Dozens of bronzed, statuesque figures filled the College of Education auditorium on Saturday.
Those who stumbled upon the sight could have been forgiven for thinking they were witnessing the search for cast members for a sequel to the Spartan battle movie 300.
Tanned, taut and tumid, the competitors in the 2015 National Amateur Body Builders Association South Island Bodybuilding Championships resembled more impressive versions of Rodin's The Thinker.
And like the famed bronze sculpture, months of dedication and hard work were required to cut the figures on stage.
Nabba Otago area representative Suzee Sinclair said those competing in the championships could have spent up to four hours a day, six days a week over the past year preparing for the competition.
For the event itself, the competitors spent the past week tanning, fasting, waxing and dehydrating themselves, she said.
''They would have had tans done for the last two days, so some people wouldn't have had showers for two days,'' she said.
On the day of the competition, the competitors were smeared in a substance ''like Vegemite'' to provide final definition to their muscles.
''If you haven't got a tan you look really insipid,'' she said.
But their hard work paid off as they took to the stage to cheers and applause.
All were competing for a place at the national titles in Auckland on October 11.
Ms Sinclair said 50 people competed in the event on Saturday, down on last year's 70.
''A lot of the athletes have a year off because it's really hard on your body,'' she said.
Results
Novice figure tall: Tylah Flett 1, Laura Bungard 2, Shannon Parsons 3.
Novice athletic tall: Simon Visser 1, Dominic Fukuhara 2, Shaun Keegan 3.
Novice shape: Sophie Dawson 1, Sandy Kim 2, Aliesha Hutchinson 3.
Teenage men: Felix Lucas 1, Nick McCallum 2, Tom Lowe 3.
Junior men: Chris Kennedy 1, Matt Miller 2.
Senior physique women 40: Lisa Williams 1.
Novice physique women short: Jemma Benfell 1, Leah Watts 2.
Novice athletic short: Jonathan Fisher Hewitt 1, Marek Brewster 2, Liam Sargent 3.
Novice figure short: Shannon Booth 1, Amy Kwang 2, Janet Hodgetts 3.
Masters 40: John McConnell 1.
Masters 50: Richard Smith 1, Hugh Geddes 2.
Open shape: Priyaanka Khatri 1, Ruth Tae'iloa 2, Chanti Porter 3.
Novice physique men short: Angus Gibbons 1.
Novice physique men tall: Shaun King 1.
Open physique men short: James Moyle 1, Nick Barbour 2.
Senior figure 50: Debe Stewart 1, Judy Duggan 2.
Senior figure 40: Lynda Evans 1, Maria Oliphant O'Donnell 2.
Open figure tall: Jessica Nelipovich 1.
Masters athletic 50: Fred Groen 1.
Masters athletic 40: Bevan Chapman 1.
Open athletic short: Jamie Prasad 1.
Open athletic tall: Ryan Wilson 1.
Mixed pairs: Ryan Wilson/Shannon Booth 1.
Overall Ms Physique and Ms South Island: Lisa Williams.
Overall Mr Athletic and Mr South Island: Simon Visser.
Overall Ms Figure and Ms South Island: Shannon Booth.
Overall Mr Physique and Mr South Island: Shaun King.
Ms Shape South Island: Priyaanka Khatri.
Best male performance: Ryan Wilson.
Best female performance: Chanti Porter.
Top South Island gym: Sky Fitness.
