Tyrel shares his Mr Universe journey

The Advertiser chats to the star about the hassles, challenges and rewards that came with his experience and how it all began, among other topics.

“After winning the WPF South African bodybuilding championship on October 4, I was approached by the International Body Building and Fitness Federation to compete at Mr Universe, which was held on October 18 in Italy,” says Ekermans.

“First, I was not sure if I should do it or not – Mr Universe? That’s where all the big men are,” he said.

“My first flight was from OR Tambo International on Thursday, October 16. I was worried that I was going to hold and retain water on the day of competition, because I wouldn’t have time to acclimatise.

“To add more stress, I was informed that I was allowed 500ml bottles of distilled water on the airplane, only to get to the airport where I was told I was not allowed to have any bottles on me.

“After a long flight, including stopovers in Dubai, I arrived in Toronto, Italy, on Friday, October 17.

“The next challenge was to find food – not just any food, but food to ‘carb up’ on. After walking around for hours not knowing the town (like a proper tourist), I came right.

“On the day of the show (October 18), all the athletes stayed in the same hotel. The reception area was packed with athletes gathering together waiting for the bus, which we all had to squash into.

“During that period, I got to meet a few of the athletes and got time to see what condition they were in, and…wow! They were big! But I knew under my tracksuit was a shredded balanced physique.

“Then it was show time! We arrived at the venue and everywhere I looked there were athletes with the most insane physiques tanning up, and getting their hair and make-up done. I started to get worried and nervous, but quickly pulled myself together.

“I knew I had to just stick to my game plan, which was to stay dehydrated and eat plenty of dry carbs.

“After a long day of sitting around and waiting, it was my time to shine.

“At 6pm they announced the top 10 for the Short Class. Name-after-name got called out and, finally, there it was: Tyrel Ekermans. I had the biggest smile on my face while walking onto the stage, thought that was the best day of my life, and didn’t think it could get better.

“After doing my thing on stage, they called out the top six. And in fourth place… Tyrel Ekermans!

“At first, I thought I heard wrong, but I hadn’t; I finished fourth in Mr Universe!” enthused Ekermans.

“I know this will sound cliché, but I thought I was going to shed a tear. I might have or not have, no one will know,” he chuckled.

“I didn’t sleep that night, because I was so happy and proud of myself. But my amazing journey did not end there; I just wanted to get home and show everyone that I finished fourth in Mr Universe.

“When we got to Bari Airport in Italy, they told us that our flight to Rome had been delayed by more than an hour. At this stage, we were not worried, thinking that the next airline will wait for us.

“We eventually left for Rome, but we had missed our flight to Dubai. Not a problem; we will just book the next flight that was available the next morning, we thought. This meant we had to sleep at the airport.

“We slept on the floor of Rome’s airport, so I was tired and just wanted to get home. I arrived in Johannesburg late Tuesday afternoon, October 21, very tired, but one happy chappy.” – @SabeloBoksburg