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| STAN'S THE MAN. First Filipino and first Asian bodybuilder to place in Mr. Universe. |
The icon of Philippine bodybuilding, Estanislao “Stan”
Carbungco was born on 13 Nov. 1931, the youngest of 7 children to Don Ambrosio Ocampo
Carbungco with roots in Porac, and Doña Angelina Cuenco. His father, a former
chef of Casino Español for 8 years, was a successful restaurateur, founder of
the popular Carbungco Restaurant, a renown catering and dining place in pre-war
Manila, with a branch in Antipolo.
Though the young Stan was raised in a comfortable household,
he learned from his father the value of hard work, who had no qualms washing
dishes and doing menial jobs in his own restaurant.
He spent his school years at the Far Eastern University,
where he finished high school. He would later finish his Commerce degree at the
same university.
Sickly growing up, Stan began doing weight training in a
gym. He became so good at it that he was soon immersing himself deeply in
physical culture. His parents did not exactly approve of his interest in
bodybuilding, which was not a common sport at that time.
There were only a few visible musclemen in the 50s , and one of them was Jesus Ramos,
Mr. Philippines of 1951, who became a certified star after appearing in a
series of jungle movies, and dubbed as the Philippine Tarzan. Then there was
Olympian Rodrigo del Rosario, who, en route to
placing fourth in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, set a world and Olympic record in the military
press portion of his event.
Hoping to join competitions, Carbungco continued to train
in secret. In 1954, he qualified for the Mr. Philippines bodybuilding contest,
and to his surprise, won the his first of two national titles. He
would duplicate that achievement by winning the Mr. Philippines title yet again
in 1959, which would proved to be his most successful year.
It was an exciting time for a 28 year old to fly to
Montreal, Canada as the first ever country representative to the 1959 Mr. Universe
bodybuilding contest. an event organized by the International Federation of
Body Building and Fitness. He traveled alone, without a retinue to assist him,
but that did not seem to faze him. He not only made bodybuilding friends from
around the world—but also history for Asian sports.
Carbungco placed 1st as the Most Muscular in
the Medium class division, and earned runner-up honors to Mr. Universe Medium
class. In the overall class, the unheralded athlete was named second Most
Muscular after Eddie Silvestre of the U.S., who went on to become Mr. Universe. To him goes the distinction of being the first Filipino and only Asian to break into the winning circle, a feat unprecedented
at that time.
Upon his return, Carbungco made a major shift by
concentrating on weightlifting rather than bodybuilding. It was an opportune
time as the 1960 Rome Olympics were coming up, and he was hoping to follow the
footsteps of the prodigious Rodrigo del Rosario who, 8 years before, had pressed 231
¼ lbs. , a new Olympic Mark in his featherweight division. He began
powerlifting, and at one point, he was lifting weights that would have been
good for Olympic bronze or silver.
Indeed, Carbungco was being touted as a sure Olympic bet
and medalist in weightlifting, but his Olympic dreams were dashed when, after
appearing in a print ad for boat motors, lost his amateur status for being paid
as an endorser.
Carbungco was sadly frustrated over this disqualification,
but he never looked back. Instead, he stepped up his efforts to promote the sports
of bodybuilding like never before. After
his competitive days were over, he put
up a weight and fitness center, ‘Stan Carbungco’s Gym”, in Quezon City where he personally
trained and mentored many young physical culturists. To meet the growing needs for gym equipment,
Carbungco pioneered the local manufacture of weight-training equipment and gear
in the Philippines. The well-patronized
gym had a loyal following, and the hallowed institution for bodybuilding has
been in operation for over 50 years now.
All his life, Carbungco devoted his time and energy to
the fitness sport he loved. For many years he headed the Philippine Federation
of Body Builders, an official affiliate of IFBB which fields Filipino
bodybuilders to various competitions abroad. He also co-founded the
Powerlifting Association of the Philippines (PAP) in 1982.
The legendary bodybuilder, "Mang Stan", as he was called in his later years, passed away at age 81 on 10 March 2012. He
left behind his wife, Edna Oquendo-Carbungco and their children, and a legacy
of health and fitness advocacies that he passionately pursued, and which continues to inspire
Philippine sports to this day.
SOURCES:
Sibug, Edgardo. “PORAC: A Rancheria at Batiauwan
1594-2004”, © 2003. p. 280
FB Interview with Mr. Tiny Carbungco, son of Stan
Carbungco
Tiny Carbungco FB Page
Jeffrey dePadua Panela
Lolo Stan Carbungco Tribute: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ef9a9q9g3f4
Uploaded by Grace Carbungco, published April 3, 2012.
Stan Carbungco tribute: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7hqbaut5UI
Uploaded by Beng Gonzales, published 22 March 20102,
accessed 2 Nov, 2018.
Special thanks to Mr. Ed Escolito Escobar
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