KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 6
India's Sarabhanan Mani was declared Mr Asia in the 55th Asian Bodybuilding and Physique Sports Championship here today.
Mani finished first among 10 finalists - winners in their respective weight categories - in the competition.
He had made it to the finals as the winner of the 90kg weight category.
Home team Nepal finished third overall in the men's section of the championship with 260 points. India finished first with 795 points, while Thailand came second with 590 points. In the women's section, Thailand, Vietnam and Hong Kong claimed top three positions respectively.
On the final day of the championship, Biplav Karki added a bronze medal for Nepal when he finished third in the men's athletics physique up to 182cm. India's Rama Somasekhar won gold and Bhutan's Tandin Wangchen bagged silver.
Nepal won a total of 14 medals - three golds, six silvers and five bronze - in the championship. Bishal Paudel (junior bodybuilding), Sanam Mulguthi (swimsuit category) and Rajani Shrestha (55kg bodybuilding) won gold medals for Nepal. Likewise, Suresh Duwal (55kg), Ashim Babu Garunge (60kg), Manoj Subedi (65kg), Lalit Dhimal (75kg), Raju Rai (fitness physique), Tara Khaiju (model physique) claimed silver medals. Kamal Bhandari (60kg), Krishna Prasad Shrestha (80kg), Ranjit Lama (fitness physique), Biplav Karki (athletics physique), Nihal Man Joshi ((athletics physique) bagged bronze medals.
A total of 236 athletes, including 168 men and 68 women, from 17 countries - Nepal, Bhutan, China, Hong Kong, India, Kazakhstan, Macau, Maldives, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam - took part in 45 categories - 28 men's, 16 women's and a mixed. The championship was organised by the Asian Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation under the auspices of the Nepal Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation.
Meanwhile, four Nepali officials were elected in the Asian Bodybuilding and Physique Sports Federation from the electoral congress held on the sidelines of the Championship. Nepal Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation President Rajesh Babu Shrestha was elected as the executive vice-president, while NBFF vice-presidents Bijay Lal Kayastha and Rajesh Upadhyay were picked as ABBF vice-president and member respectively. NBBF General Secretary Dinesh Rajbhandari was nominated as the president of the Technical Committee.
