Axe Man grabs crown at Mr International pageant in London



"The London contest was a lot tougher... we competed with 40 of the best contestants from around the world" says William Kelly.
He charmed the audience and impressed the judges to win the Axe Manhunt 2003, the first ever male beauty pageant held in the UAE in June. And William Kelly did it again at the Mr International pageant held last month at the Millennium Dome, London, to bring the Mr International 2003 crown to the UAE.

William also won the title of Mr Physique proving that he is a good combination of brains and brawn.

Besides these two titles, participants from the UAE also won other prizes. Our men demonstrated their supremacy in the physique department with Briton Greg Sharpe, who works as a sports and leisure manager, walking away with the Mr Physique-runner up title.

Indian dentist Dr Mohammed Samir, the winner of the Mr Physique title in the UAE, was declared Mr Photogenic-runner up to make it a record sweep of four titles for the UAE in its first-ever appearance at the Mr International pageant.

"The contest in London was a lot tougher than the one in the UAE. We were judged on our talent, physique, interaction with others and many other criteria. And we had to compete with 40 of the best contestants from around the world," says William, a health and fitness manager at Millennium Hotel, Sharjah.

For his talent round, William chose to make an origami rose while doing squats not on the floor but while balancing on a Swiss ball. "It was difficult but it gave me a chance to demonstrate both my agility and creativity," he says.

In the final round, the contestants had to answer a question about what character they would like to play in a film role. "Tom Hanks in Saving Private Ryan because the character shows courage, fortitude, honesty and loyalty in the face of adversity," said the Welshman to clinch the title.

William has won cash prizes worth $7,500 and lucrative modelling contracts.

"It is great to have won these titles. But the best thing about participating in this pageant is that we got the chance to compete with and to make friends with contestants from so many different countries," says Samir, who is a well-known model in the UAE.

"The Axe Manhunt 2003 has brought much-needed attention to male modelling in the UAE and placed Dubai on the world map of modelling. We are very proud of our new global superstars. We provided them with a launch pad and we are sure that with their talent, looks and brains they will go places," says Sunish Tom, event director, Impresario, organisers of Axe Manhunt 2003.