POWERLIFTING: Bay Brazilian raises the bar

ANENDRA SINGH
Evandro Carlos Taparello would hide snack food in his overall pockets when he first started work in Hastings.
When no one was looking, the Brazilian would gobble biscuits or cheese between picking fruit in the orchards.
"For two or three months I was feeling very hungry all the time. I'd go to work with some food in my pockets," says Taparello sheepishly, his face taking on a shade of crimson.
"In Brazil, the main meal of the day is lunch. At dinner time we just snack or have the left-overs from the day," the 28-year-old Hastings powerlifter explains.
The cultural differences frustrate Taparello, who will attempt a combined 600kg squat, deadlift and bench press during the New Zealand Powerlifting Championship at the Hastings Sports Centre this weekend. Among 80 competitors from throughout New Zealand, his goal is to book a ticket to Townsville, Australia, for the Oceania Championships from December 8-10.
Taparello, who now works for Hastings painting contractor Brian Relly, says most businesses in Brazil shut for 1 1/2 hours for lunch so workers can have a decent meal and 30 minutes of siesta.
"They close from 12.30pm to 2pm. Only places like the pharmacies and petrol stations stay open. They have a little nap after eating and then work until 6pm," says Taparello, peeling red paint off his fingers at the gym.
As a schoolboy, Taparello often ended up helping his father, Luiz, a builder, for pocket money. At lunchtime, Mum Dorildes would rustle up a sumptuous pasta dish, smothered with cheese. Taparello's Italian grandfather settled in Brazil after World War 2.
"Over here I stop work for only half an hour and people sit down to eat sandwiches and pies," he says.
He feels obesity is becoming a major concern in New Zealand because people go to bed with too much food in their stomachs. Eating a heavy lunch, he argues, is healthier than an enormous dinner before bedtime.
From Descanso City, about 17 hours' drive from Brasilia, Taparello arrived in Auckland in 2003 but left two days later when he spotted a newspaper advertisement seeking fruitpickers in Hawke's Bay.
He was in a military school at Rio but found there was "too much corruption" in the army.
"I enjoyed the exercise routine but it didn't work out. You need a godfather or some relative to push for your promotion in the army," says Taparello, who succumbed to family pressure to join the school in an attempt to pick up other skills such as the English and Spanish languages, and computer.
While in the army, he competed in triathlons. "I'm physically very fit and tried playing soccer but I don't have Ronaldinho and Cafu's skills. My father is 54 years old and still plays soccer," he says, disappointed with Brazil's premature exit from the recent Fifa World Cup.
While working in Hastings, Taparello bumped into powerlifter Nathan Williams, who encouraged him to take up the sport at the Physique 2000 gym. Fellow lifter Nick Hansen introduced him to a diet plan eight months ago, producing tangible results in his physique.
"It is a bit scary to do big squats but you can have a lot of fun with three people, leaving behind all the stresses of work," he says in his thick Portuguese accent.
Taparello, who has competed in two competitions already, has bulked up from 70kg to 81kg since he started the diet.
It has also gone a long way to helping him adapt to Kiwi eating habits. He flats with fellow bodybuilders Sarah Nairn, the 2002 Miss World Shape champion, and Ecuadorian Eduardo Perez-Mawyin.
For someone who was used to eating rice, beans and "lots of meat" in Brazil, Taparello finds meat expensive in the Bay.
"I can buy cheap bulk meat packs but when you're sharing the fridge space with two other flatmates then stocking food is out of the question," he says.
When working out, a picture of former world champion lifter Derek Pomana inspires him.
"Nathan has a photo in his diary of Derek, who is bleeding from his nose while squatting with 400kg weights," says Taparello, who believes an element of anger is crucial in powerlifting for motivation.
He hasn't has the courage to share his new sport with his family at home, yet.
"I'll be sending your newspaper story to my family. I used to sit in the lounge watching sports on TV with my father and he would say I don't like people's body looking like that. I hope you boys (including Taparello's elder brother, Jaldir) never use funny stuff," he says, rubbing the tattoo in Chinese letters on his left tricep that translates to "strong faith".
"I'm not into steroids and will never use it." .