Female bodybuilders set new beauty standards

Nov 14, 2017 06:00 am

This is not your average Thai beauty pageant.

This is a competition for the growing number of female bodybuilders challenging norms in a country where the pale "twig" physique has long been upheld as the standard of beauty.

Ms Nittaya Kongthun, the 26-year-old full-time trainer who took home first prize in the Model Physique division, believes beauty and lifestyle trends are starting to shift.

She was drawn to bodybuilding to boost her fitness and develop a new look she describes as "Barbie doll but with more muscles".

Thailand now boasts more than 500 men and women who compete in bodybuilding professionally, and is set to host the World Bodybuilding and Physique Sports Championship in Chiang Mai in December next year. - AFP