Caribbean Body Building Championships in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

While the results were among the strongest ever posted by the Island in the competition, at least two of the competitors felt the team deserved a better shake.

"The judges were quite familiar with (the other competitors) whereas our team was quite new,'' said Ian Brunson, who was sixth in the men's lightweight division. "Maybe that worked to our detriment.'' "A lot of (the marks) were based on reputation,'' added Sally Wombwell, who finished seventh in the heavyweight class.

The best result was turned in by Melanie DeRosa, fourth among women's middleweights, while Carlos Astwood failed to make the cut for the top eight.

Wombwell and Brunson, the reigning Miss and Mr. Bermuda, teamed up to finish sixth in mixed pairs.

Both said the audience favoured the Bermuda competitors, although it wasn't reflected in the judging. "I was pleased that all my goals were met (including becoming only the second Bermudian and first in ten years to place in the top eight),'' said Brunson, 34. "But based on the crowd reaction, I was disappointed.'' One thing the two hadn't counted on was the physics of flying, which added several pounds to their frame.

Wombwell, 27, ended up missing her weight class (128 pounds) and was forced to compete against the big girls.