Asia’s largest health and fitness festival - the International Health, Sports, and Fitness Festival (IHFF) 2023 came to a spectacular conclusion on November 19. In attendance at the mega-event were 600 athletes from across the globe, fitness and health enthusiasts, and celebrities. The three-day jamboree changed perceptions of health and fitness by combining Asia's top bodybuilding competitions with an exhibit on fitness and health. The highlights of the festival were the prestigious Steadfast Nutrition Pro Show, Asia’s biggest bodybuilding event, and the Amateur Olympia, India’s most coveted championship for bodybuilding championship for amateur athletes, sponsored by Steadfast Nutrition.
These platforms provide an international platform for India's talented individuals to demonstrate their skills. The champions of the Steadfast Nutrition Pro show India earn a direct entry into Mr Olympia USA, the world’s most prestigious bodybuilding tournament.
The prestigious three-day event hailed as Asia’s leading business-to-business (B2B) health and wellness expo took place at Mumbai's Bombay Exhibition Centre. Steadfast Nutrition's exhibit was the largest and was a crowd-puller. There was an impressive increase in the number of people who came to try our premium line of supplements. Thrilled customers left Steadfast Nutrition with compliments and positive feedback. Many came to the booth to participate in the exciting fitness activities, competing to prove their fitness skills.
IHFF Day 1
The amazing three-day extravaganza began with the lamp-lighting ceremony. The openers of Asia’s grandest health and fitness festival included fitness and bodybuilding icons, business leaders, and event organisers who came together for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, which was followed by a lively discussion and felicitation to kick off the momentous occasion. The audience was inspired by the passion, dedication, and drive for excellence displayed by prominent individuals in the fitness field and celebrity athletes who graced the occasion. The list included bodybuilding greats Terrence Ruffin and Chul Soon, Bollywood celebrities Sonu Sood and Suniel Shetty, and Shiv Sena MLA Pratap Sarnaik
The visitors were inspired and motivated to pursue their fitness goals by these distinguished individuals, including well-known bodybuilders, influencers, and yoga instructors. Steadfast Nutrition founder Aman Puri took centre-stage, interacting with fitness industry heavyweights, holding fruitful talks with them.
Day 1 of IHFF roared to life as athletes stormed in on the stage, filled with fire and determination. All the athletes, including Steadfast Athletes, were excited to officially join this coveted bodybuilding tournament and thronged the registration booths. Then came the weigh-in moment! Showing off their commitment to precisely fitting into their weight divisions and respective categories, athletes stepped onto the scales. And it was finally trunk number time for them! Like a backstage pass to the 3-day muscle-show fest, each competitor received a unique tag, resembling their line-ups, categories, and divisions.
Soon, the spotlight shifted to the Steadfast Nutrition Pro Show athlete meet. As a token of appreciation and recognition for their commitment and hard work, the participating athletes received Pro Show athlete robes. Their enthusiasm was increased when they were rewarded for their dedication to bodybuilding and fitness with goodies comprising high-quality and premium supplements from the house of Steadfast Nutrition. From awe-inspiring displays by Steadfast Athletes as they posed with the brand’s supplements to the brisk activity at the Steadfast booth where the supplements were crowd-pullers - Day 1 simply belonged to Steadfast.
IHFF Day 2
The second day of IHFF started with just the right note with a unique, not-to-be-missed dance dedicated to Lord Ganesh.
It was now time for Steadfast Nutrition to present Amateur Olympia India 2023. Athletes were granted entry to the Green Room as the doors opened. It was time for tanning! Ready to take the stage — and own it — athletes began the hustle to get their ideal tan for an epic muscle showdown.
The excitement skyrocketed as Steadfast Nutrition presents Amateur Olympia India 2023 began with the pre-judging rounds of Men's Bodybuilding, Women’s Physique, Women’s Fitness, Women’s Figure, Wheelchair Category, Men’s Classic Physique, Women’s Wellness, witnessing the participation of incredible talents. Each category brought its unique strength and grace to the stage. The excited crowd burst into cheers as each athlete displayed their best conditioning and posing, honed their positions, and gave it their all. The competitors' battle for the spotlight was a real muscular carnival, leaving the audience in complete amazement. Steadfast Athletes made the brand proud. Ishu Thakur won the gold, while Rohit Shetty and Md. Akram won a bronze medal each.
Soon, the most awaited moment, the ultimate pro card showdown arrived after the dramatic finals. In a nail-biting competition, gold medal winners from every category faced off for the coveted pro card status, marking a turning point in their fitness careers.
The Athletes who earned pro cards included:
Men’s Bodybuilding: Mohammad Mehrablou from Iran, Ifesinachi Friday from Nigeria, and Pahlavon Sowvahobov from Russia
Women’s Physique: Natalia Ermolova from Russia and Nastaran Mahdizadeh from Iran
Women’s Fitness: Soniya Mitra from India
Women’s Figure: Natalia Lavgud from Russia, Tiylkina Anastasiia from Russia, and Elena Rakcheeva from Russia
Men's Classic Physique: Chaitanya Prabhu from India, Anand Yadav from India, and Mohammed Mobin from India
Women’s Wellness: Dayely Alexandra Onate from Colombia, Somayeh Saeedi from Iran, and Elena Tseluiko from Russia
Women's Bikini: Oleksandra Khovrych from Ukraine, Daria Sulzhenko from Russia, Ekaterina Opekunova from Russia
Men's Physique: Vardhan Malhotra from India, Surojit Dey from India, and Harvinder Singh from India
After the championship results were declared, Mr Aman Puri took to the stage to honour top-notch Steadfast Athletes and trainers, recognised as the best in the industry. A moment of celebration and appreciation unfolded as they were acknowledged for their outstanding contributions to the world of fitness at the IHFF.
IHFF Day 3
Day 3 began with the Amateur Olympia IFBB pro qualifiers for men's physique and women's bikini, leading to exciting finals where competitors vied for the prestigious pro card.
Steadfast Nutrition honoured its most loyal dealers. They were felicitated by none other than Mr Sheru Angrish, Steadfast Athlete and Actress Shweta Gulati and Steadfast’s brand face and bodybuilding icon Rohit Shetty.
Steadfast Nutrition also unveiled HerbFast Protein, the herbs-and spice-infused protein as a protein efficiency formula to meet Indians’ daily protein needs.
Soon, the start of the pro show's prejudging sent the adrenaline skyrocketing. It was the first time the wheelchair category was a part of the Pro Show India, a momentous occasion that will go down in bodybuilding history.
Post-pre-judging, Terence Ruffin and Chul Soon electrified the audience by posing as guest posers on the stage. Ruff Diesel's rendition of a well-known song by Lt. Sidhu Moosewala caused the crowd to erupt in screams and praises, transforming the expo into a flurry of energy.
As the three-day extravaganza came to an end and the most-awaited pro performances finally began, the finale struck hard. Athletes set the stage on fire, by bringing their A-game, radiating dedication, and displaying incredible muscle strength and definition on stage. Five pro show winners marked their direct entry to Mr Olympia.
Here’s the list of winners:
212 Men's Bodybuilding: Vitor Alves Porto from Brazil
Men’s Classic Physique: Terrence Ruffin from the USA
Men’s Physique: Benquil Marigny from USA
Women’s Bikini: Priscilla Rodrigues from Brazil
Pro Wheelchair: Rajesh John from India
The highlights of the Mumbai edition of the IHFF were ground-breaking moments, historic firsts, and incredible performances. The momentous event will surely leave an indelible mark in the annals of bodybuilding and fitness. With their three amazing displays of muscle, IHFF had raised the standard and left everyone flexing for more!
Steadfast Nutrition remains the driving force behind IHFF, Asia’s largest health and fitness festival, ensuring its ongoing prominence and success.
India’s fastest-growing premium sports nutrition and wellness brand in India is now gearing up to be the driving force being the Amateur Olympia, the most sought-after bodybuilding event for amateur athletes at IHFF 2024, which will be held in the capital. See you folks at the largest booth at the IHFF.
