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One Piece bodybuilding contest in Japan looking for ripped anime fans to dress, pose like Luffy

Casey Baseel Feb 6, 2025
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Sure, Luffy is gonna be king of the pirates, but who’s gonna be king of the bodybuilders?

“One Piece gym” might sound like another athletic-themed one-day event from the smash hit anime/manga franchise, like its collaborations with Los Angeles’ professional basketball team the Lakers and pro football squad the Rams. In actuality, though, One Piece Fitness BragMen is a permanent institution, and the fitness facility has been One Piece-themed every day since its opening in Tokyo’s Shibuya neighborhood in 2023.

Having just reached the two-year milestone last month, the gym is now gearing/bulking up for its latest fusion of anime fandom and fitness with the opening of entries for a One Piece bodybuilding contest.

Called the One Piece Body Make Contest Presented by BragMen, the goal is to “Strive for Luffy’s built-up body.” Contestants are required to wear denim shorts and a straw hat, matching protagonist Luffy’s preferred attire, and will be judged on a variety of factors split into two broad categories. The first is “One Piece elements,” which evaluates the contestant’s posing as a demonstration of their understanding of the One Piece anime/manga, as well as their ability to reproduce Luffy’s appearance costuming and overall look.

The second evaluation category will be “body make elements,” focused on more traditional bodybuilding competition areas such as muscular volume and tone, but also cleanliness of skin and hair, and also how nice the contestant’s smile is.

Entrants are required to submit six photos, starting with a front view, back view, and “spirit charging pose,” as demonstrated in the images above. Also required are a Gear 2 pose photo…

…and a Gum-Gum Gatling pose.

The sixth and final photo is a free pose for entrants to choose themselves, but given the One Piece elements part of the evaluation, recreating a pose that Luffy strikes somewhere within the pages of the manga or episodes of the anime is the best bet if you’re looking to impress the judges.

Would-be kings of the bodybuilding pirates have between now and April 30 to submit their applications, with the contest open to males ages 18 and up. Once all applications have been collected, the organizers of One Piece Body Make Contest Presented by BragMen (the gym itself, One Piece manga serialization home Weekly Shonen Jump, and Gold’s Gym-affiliated bodybuilding contest association Muscle Gate) will select the best entries to then compete against one another at a final-stage tournament to be held in the city of Kawasaki, Tokyo’s neighbor to the south, on June 1. As a perk, entrants selected to compete in the finals will be allowed to use One Piece Fitness BragMen’s facilities free of charge up to May 31.

Full entry details can be found on the Muscle Gate website here.

Source: One Piece Fitness BragMen via Twitter/@OP_BragMen via Anime News Network/Ken Iikura-Gross
Images: One Piece Fitness BragMen
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