Merimba targets breakthrough

 Goroka local Luie Merimba is an outside chance of cracking the national men’s bodybuilding train-on squad for the Pacific Games but that has not stopped the 31-year-old from training his heart out.

Although the 16 members of the national squad have already been named, Merimba, who arrived back from Australia last year, is using the facilities at the National High Performance Training Centre to build up for the Games.

“I have given my documents to them (HPTC) and at the moment I am just working-out and I’ll see how things go,” Merimba said.

“If I get the green light to compete at their trials, there’s nothing more than I would love then to show the bodybuilding selectors I’m good enough.” 

Merimba, a self-professed gym rat, says he loves lifting weights so much that it has been a daily obsession for him.

He said he was inspired by veteran Jack Viyufa to take up the sport after seeing him win the Under-75kg title last year at the East Asia-Pacific Championship in Queensland. “I saw Jack competing at that meet and I just thought he was in great shape.

“That inspired me to want to be a bodybuilder,” Merrimba said.

“I told myself that if Papua New Guineans can compete on the international stage and win events despite having next to no facilities, then that meant we had a lot of potential,” he said.

The 16-member national squad arrive in Port Moresby today to train at the HPTC and compete in performance trials.