Whanganui bodybuilders sweep national competition with two-time Mr New Zealand as their coach

Whanganui's former Mr NZ, Glen Lacy, returned to NABBA Nationals as a coach, leading a team of aspiring bodybuilders who brought home medals of their own.

A team of aspiring Whanganui bodybuilders, coached by two-time Mr New Zealand Glen Lacy, have claimed national titles in their first competition.

Five Whanganui athletes claimed nine national titles, with three making it through to the overall finals, at the National Amateur Bodybuilders Association (NABBA) 2025 New Zealand Championships.

“I couldn’t be any happier than I was,” Lacy said.

The championships were held in Cambridge on September 27. It was also a qualifier event for the NABBA 2025 Universe competition in the UK.

Justin Falconer, 17, won the Classic Teen and Bodybuilding Teen titles.

“He was amazing, that kid. He’s got a huge future,” Lacy said.

Jeremy Fernandez won the Classic Novice category.

Devon Smith was second in Classic Bodybuilding and Open Bodybuilding.

Geoff Maxim placed third in Bodybuilding and Classic Bodybuilding.

Richard Orchard, the oldest competitor in the Whanganui team, was third in Bodybuilding over-45 and won the Classic over-45, “which is a really hard category”, Lacy said.

Lacy helped the first-time bodybuilders prepare for the event over the past 16 weeks through strict training and diet plans, with some dropping up to 12kg. They learned how to pose, a key element of the competition, practising for two months.

In the two weeks before the event, athletes began to cut additional weight, following a regimented diet and water intake plan to achieve emphasised muscles or a “dry look”.

“It is a mind game ... it’s not even a sport, it’s a lifestyle,” Lacy said.

Lacy has been retired from competitive bodybuilding for two years and found coaching to be a new way to give back and stay involved.

As a personal trainer at City Fitness, he was already experienced in coaching.

“I loved [coaching], but I’ve still got the urge to jump on, you know?”

He was first named Mr New Zealand in 2021 after winning his age group and then the overall competition. He was named Mr New Zealand over-50 in 2023, at 51.

He announced his retirement from competitive bodybuilding after the national competition in 2023, after a decade of competing as an amateur.

He said the thing he loved most about the sport was the positive impact it could have on athletes.

“You don’t just grow physically, it’s confidence.

“Just seeing the change in them from 12–16 weeks out to the night … all that hard work pays off and smiling and just really enjoying it.”

Lacy began competitive bodybuilding while undergoing rehabilitation for a neck injury he suffered when a rugby scrum collapsed on top of him. It became his new challenge and was especially difficult as a type-2 diabetic.

“It keeps you young, you know, healthy.”

As a coach, it was rewarding to watch the impact it had on his athletes and their confidence.

“That’s the thing that I love about it, you know, it changes their lives.”

Bodybuilding had not been particularly popular in recent years in Whanganui, he said.

In 2023, he was the only Whanganui competitor at the NABBA event.

After this year’s competition, he has more athletes, including females, wanting to get involved in the sport and train with him for next year’s competition.

“I like to think it’s a new era for bodybuilding [in Whanganui].”