Hari sa Sugbo winner vies for Superbod title

CEBU, Philippines — Summer is here and it won’t be long until the heat has us flocking to the beach. If you’re wishing to achieve your fitness goals for the skin-baring season, you might want to take a tip or two from Cebu’s very own Elcid Magne Pidor Camacho.

The 26-year-old civil engineering undergraduate hailing from Getafe town of Bohol is among the finalists of this year’s Century Tuna Superbods search. For the first time, the fitness competition features 40 finalists as they opened a second category called Ageless (38-50 years old), apart from the usual Superbods category (18-37 years old).

Indeed, any man and woman regardless of age can be the next national fitspiration.

About eight years ago, Elcid – who is in a band and loves to sing, dance, sketch, and play basketball – moved to Cebu to finish his studies. But his academics was put on hold because of his family’s financial situation.

That didn’t stop Elcid from reaching his dreams. In fact, it only made him want to pursue them more. The eldest son of a housewife and a farmer, Elcid is based in Talisay City with his family.

He has always wanted to become an actor and the opportunity to step into the limelight happened in the form of a  makeup artist-classmate, who felt that he might stand a chance in pageantry.

“I started joining pageants in school, at the University of Cebu Main Campus. A classmate of mine, who is a make-up artist, told me that I have a chance in winning pageants because I had abs. But I was so thin before. My classmate brought me to photoshoots, and eventually I joined pageants. I lost several times before I won titles,” Elcid recalls.

Since then, Elcid made it a point to work out, and it wasn’t long until he had a string of modeling gigs and pageant competitions. Just last February, Elcid was crowned the first Hari Sa Sugbo and was also named Best in Swimsuit.

Lady Luck didn’t stop there. Only a week after his Hari Sa Sugbo 2018 coronation, Elcid received news that he made the cut as an official Century Tuna Superbods finalist.

“I tried my luck by going to the Cebu go-see of Superbods. Then I was picked to join the final callbacks in Manila. Out of around 80 male semifinalists, I was chosen as one of the ten finalists,” Elcid shares.

The model had doubts when he decided to join the competition. “One thing that got me down was that I didn’t receive proper support from the people in the pageant industry. As if they didn’t have faith that I would get in. But I turned it into a challenge and reminded myself that there will always be people who will lack faith. So my advice is, just go for your dreams and follow your instincts,” he muses.

Flying to Manila early this month, Elcid, alongside the rest of the Century Tuna Superbods finalists, learned healthy recipes and workout tips through diet, workout and ramp workshops. The finalists attended the VIP Night hosted by Mond Gutierrez and Gelli Victor and conquered the Ultimate Challenge that tested the finalists’ mental and physical health at the Inflatable Island in Subic.

Going into the competition, Elcid knew what his game plan was going to be: work on his weakness.

“Century Tuna Superbods is looking for a perfect endorser. That means, it should be a package: face, sexy body, brain and good attitude. My game plan is to enhance my weakness, which is public speaking. I need to be more confident in front of the crowd and cameras. I’m not good with pronunciations and my accent sucks, but I’m enhancing it now,” offers Elcid.

One of his struggles was to find the financial support to get him through his Superbods journey which lasts for more than a month. But he managed with some help and felt like he was taken care of during pre-finals events.

With P500,000, a chance at training with Star Magic and a Chevrolet Trax at stake, Elcid believes that he is what Century Tuna Superbods is searching for. Looking good and staying fit takes lots of hard work, which is why he says that people should watch out for him because he will definitely do his best come finals night.

“I know that this is really a big event. So being part of the finals is already a prize for me. I know that many people would want to be part of this. Obviously, a national competition is tougher because we’re talking about the whole nation. There’s pressure because you don’t know much about your competitors.”

During the callbacks, Elcid was the only Bisaya among the males. Fellow Cebuano Luiji Panoso was later added in the competition. Still, being one of the few representing the Visayas in a Luzon-dominated tilt is quite unnerving.

“There really is pressure but at the same time, this is also a challenge to fight for the name of Cebu and the whole South region,” he says.

Elcid acknowledges that his superbod did not happen overnight. He understands that people might be intimidated or easily discouraged but that shouldn’t stop them from giving their bodies a shot at health.

“Since my first photo shoot, they advised that I should work out because I was so thin before. After a month, I started seeing changes in my body and I’ve worked out regularly ever since. The most challenging part for me is the temptation to eat food that is not good for my diet. There should always be self-discipline.”

The HIV-AIDS awareness advocate also explains one of his advocacies which highlights health and fitness.

“I want to inspire others to do the same, by showing them how I reached my dreams through fitness and by being healthy inside and out,” the Misters of the Philippines-Bohol 2014, Hari ng Badian 2014 and Cebu Hot Body 2016 winner says.

Elcid is currently in Cebu in observance of the Holy Week. As the only son and eldest brother to two younger sisters, the five-foot-ten looker will have to put his studies in the backseat as he tries to make the most of his modeling and pageant opportunities, all the while prioritizing the education of his sisters.

As he’s slowly making strides to achieve his acting ambitions, Elcid, who looks up to Canadian actor Stephen Amell from The CW superhero series “Arrow,” feels insanely bles“I want to be an actor because I want to inspire people. And the fastest way to do that is through the showbiz industry. I want to become a good example so that the younger generation can look up to me.”

Win or lose, Elcid shares that being able to compete in Superbods is already a massive win for him. He looks forward to being the first Bisaya to win the competition. He is also eyeing another national competition: Misters of Filipinas.

“I’m so happy and really thankful. Especially to the Lord for guiding me and making me strong so I wouldn’t easily give up from challenges,” Elcid says.

Other upcoming events for the Superbods competition are the Superbods Weekend including the fun Underpants Run with Filinvest and the Zalora Fashion Show. Awards such as Stylish Superbod of the Night, Best in Congeniality, Superbods Photogenic, Runway Superbod of the Night, Superbod Beach Bod, Superbods Challenge Winner and People’s Choice are also up for grabs.

You can help Elcid win People’s Choice by voting for him online. Like, comment, and share the candidates’ Vote for Me video on the Century Tuna Superbods official Facebook page, or post about your favorite candidate on Twitter and Instagram with their official hashtags. You can keep up with Elcid’s Superbod journey on his Instagram handle @elcidcamacho.

The Century Tuna Superbods Ageless 2018 finals night will be held on April 12 at the Cove in Okada Manila.