Brawn boy in the ring!

THE strongest men on earth are busy engaged in a conversation about waxing and shaving. Behind all the brawn lies girlie. Ironically, for Mr Universe Kamal Elgargni and Mr South Africa Quentin Fong, this is just ‘regular stuff ’.
One of the biggest Mr Universe pageants took place in Mumbai last year, where more than 200 body builders came to the city and a 15,000-strong audience even exceeded the number that attended the Mr Olympia contest - the biggest and most respected contest in the world. Kamal won the Mr Universe title in the 85-kg category.
Kamal, a carpenter by profession, is of Libyan descent but lives in North Hampton, England. “By and large body building is a very poorly paid profession. Only if you are a pro and have a good manager can you make a lot of money. Magazine shoots and commercials pay more than body-building titles,� he says. While the Miss Universe pageant is supposed to be a mix of beauty and brawn, the Mr Universe contest makes no such claims. “Its all about brawn. For a good physique, genetics play a big role. If you have a bad physique, you can’t really change it,� he quips,matter-of-factly.
Ask him if his physique makes him popular among women and he avers, “Most of the time people get repulsed when they see body-builders. Sad, but true. At the same time there are girls who like a lot of muscle. But more than how we look, I think girls go for the status and popularity of the man.� “As for the others, they don’t know what they are missing out on,� he adds, with a naughty smile. As for the future, Kamal says, “In body building, unlike in any other sport one reaches his peak between 35 and 40. So there’s a long way to go. I will be pumping iron till a dumbbell falls on my head and kills me.�
anuradha.kher@timesgroup.com