Bodybuilders
The 2007 season for The Bahamas Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation has been “very good” and tonight at Workers House on the Tonique…
The season was capped off by a team championship victory at the Central American and Caribbean Bodybuilding and Fitness Championships last month in Bermuda.
Federation president Danny Sumner said, “Our main goal this year was to win the CAC championship and we did that handily. So we will end the year in grand style by awarding those hardworking athletes for their efforts.”
A special committee was assembled to plan the celebrations and according to Sumner the committee has come up with a “very good formula” to show the most appreciation to the athletes who will win the top awards.
In the years leading up to 2006 Sumner admitted that there was a drastic fall off in the number of people in the sport.
Additionally, Sumner had referred to the Grand Bahamas Bodybuilding and Fitness Association as a “sore” on the BBFF.
However, this year Sumner says he has seen a “turn around” in terms of the level of activity and the quality of bodybuilders and fitness athletes.
“Indicative of the improved level was the fact that Gena Mackey became the first Bahamian female bodybuilder to earn her professional card. When you look at the results from the CAC Championship where we had two people in the female overall final and three in the males overall final, that is what I call production,” said Sumner.
“We are still having some problems in Grand Bahamas where former president Baldwin Darling has stepped aside and it appears as if we have to take Grand Bahamas by the neck and rebuild that association,” he said.
According to Sumner the federation will send a team to Grand Bahamas to try and form a steering committee that will “revitalize the association.” He says it is the BBFF’s major goal for 2008.
“We had a few very good sponsors this year and they did a tremendous job, but sponsor support in The Bahamas has reached a critical stage,” said Sumner.
“This year the BBFF teamed up with a number of sponsors to make the season a success, but Sumner is of the opinion that the sporting community is in for some tough times because it has to compete with so many other organizations for sponsors.
He explained, “Many of the local sporting federations and associations have a major problem with getting funding and this is due to the overwhelming demand for funding. The government can only do so much.”
“What I have noticed over the past five years is that there has been a trend that has seen sponsorship by Corporate Bahamas go down drastically, and it is something that sports leaders need to look at and try to find some alternative methods for funding, which again raises the question of a lottery,” suggested Sumner.
“However,” said Sumner, “I am one of those people that do not believe we need a lottery for sports but when you look at what a lottery can do in terms of overall education, infrastructure, and social development, yes I would agree with a lottery but not just for sports funding.”
Sumner said he believes a lot of sports organizations go to corporate sponsors for assistance, and then there are those social organizations that would go to the same sponsors and as a result sports funding has thinned out.
Tags: anabolic, Bodybuilders, fitness, steroids