With less than a week of preparation, 27-year-old Robert Purcell claimed the title of Mr Suva at the 2025 Suva Classics Bodybuilding competition.
The event, held at the Metro Gym over the weekend, featured ten participants, with Purcell competing in the under-90kg category and went on to secure the overall title.
Speaking to this newspaper, Purcell said he was both happy and slightly disappointed with the outcome.
“I was really looking forward to competing alongside my buddy Bill (Viliame Sawake), who was a former Mr Suva,” he said.
“I’ve trained with him (Sawake) and I wanted to stand alongside him just to prove to myself and everyone what I am able to achieve, through just pure dedication and artwork.”
Purcell explained that he had just five days to prepare after receiving short notice.
“To get into this shape was a lot of extreme stuff.
“I did not want to do this to be honest because I felt I was not stage ready. But having just tried, I managed to grab Mr Fiji.”
He added that the opportunity to compete in Tahiti in October pushed him to enter despite his doubts.
“Now only part of the work is done, I have eight more weeks to properly prepare myself.”
Purcell, who also works as a personal fitness trainer, shared advice for aspiring athletes.
“Don’t start something and then do it half-heartedly.
“Because the fire’s gonna be burning, and then it’s just gonna go out. And when it goes out, there’s no spark or nothing.”
One of Purcells most captivating feats was during the music round.
While all of the competitors chose strong, high-energy tracks to match their routines, Purcell stood out with a more emotional performance, posing to Lovely by Billie Eilish.
His presentation was both disciplined and unexpectedly artistic.