By BRENT STUBBS

Chief Sports Editor 

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

JIMMY Norius, still seeking more financial support to continue competing in the sport of bodybuilding, pulled off his first placing since turning professional two years ago.

The 50-year-old personal fitness trainer competed at the Florida Pro League in Sarasota, Florida, over the weekend where he finished second place in the Masters Men’s Physique.

He also participated in the open category, but didn’t have as much success, but he was thrilled to know that he’s making tremendous strides as a competitor in the masters category for competitors.

Norius noted that the goal was to qualify for the Masters Olympia, which is scheduled for Tokyo, Japan in October, 2025, but they only advanced to the championship.

“I will just regroup, reset, take some time off, make some money and then I will try again,” Norius proclaimed. “I want to qualify for the Masters Olympia.” 

“I got the call out in the open division, which meant that I also had a high placing. It was much better than what I did in my previous two shows in the New York and Pittsburgh Pro League shows.”

In total, Norius said he had to compete against about 60 competitors, which served as the last qualifier for the Open Olympia next week. He said it’s much tougher to compete in the open, so he’s focusing more on the masters category. for competitors over the age of 40. 

In critiquing his performance over the weekend, Norius said he needed to concentrate a little more on his fullness because he was coming off a shoulder injury.

“Once I improve on my shoulders and my upper chest, I know I will be a top contender for the title,” Noirius projected. “That’s in the masters category, not the open.”

“Those guys in the open division are much younger and they are pushing the envelope,” he said. “I can only push my body with the time and the resources that I have.

“These young guys are taking it seriously. They have the financial backing, supplements and the gyms giving them free membership. They have money like $10,000 from endorsements and other stuff to help them.”

At one time, Norius said he was on the subvention from the Bahamas government through the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, but he’s since been removed. He said he was told that he would be returned, but he hasn’t seen the first dollar.

Back full time into working as a physical fitness instructor, Norius said he’s appreciative of some of his clients, who have stepped forward and assisted him in his expenses for his airfare, hotel accommodations, and local transport to and from the airport and the venue.

“I was a little disappointed because I’m a member of Club One and my membership expired three days before and instead of getting it complimentary, the owner told me I have to pay for the three days,” Nortius said.

“I explained to him that I had the show coming out this weekend and I would pay, but I had to get some funds from some of his clients to help assist me so that I could still attend the show over the weekend.”

Norius said he’s very disappointed the support system and the love of the sport is not there from the community like it should be. He said if it wasn’t for some of his clients supporting him, he probably would have already called it quits.

He recalled how he had to catch a four-hour greyhound bus from Sarasota to Fort Lauderdale to catch his flight back home. He noted that he didn’t have the finances to stay in the host hotel, which cost about $350-400 per night, compared to about $60 for an inexpensive hotel.

“If you’re not doing it for the love of it, it’s going to be hard,” he said. “This is something that I want to do. It’s something that I felt that there’s a greater power from God to do it. It’s not about the money because I’m not making any money.

“Once I turn in the towel, I want to say that I didn’t leave any stones unturned. I can truly say that God has blessed me. A few of my clients understand my plight and they helped to support me as much as they could.”

Norius said people need to know what’s going on in the lives of the bodybuilders, who spent a lot of money on gym membership, nutrition and food, just to maintain their bodies to compete for the Bahamas.

Having clinched his first placing as a pro, Norius said he’s eager to continue competing in the masters category, but he’s asking the support from corporate Bahamas to help in any way that they can.