{"id":10781,"date":"2026-01-17T09:58:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-17T09:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=10781"},"modified":"2026-01-17T09:58:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-17T09:58:12","slug":"co-antrim-strongwoman-claire-murdock-targeting-british-championship-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=10781","title":{"rendered":"Co Antrim strongwoman Claire Murdock targeting British Championship success"},"content":{"rendered":"


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The 26-year-old impressed in recent qualifiers in both NABBA and PCA federations<\/h2>\n
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Claire Murdock is hoping to impress at the British Championships(Image: Norm Keilty)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n

County Antrim strongwoman Claire Murdock admits she is relishing the challenge of competing against some of Britain’s top bodybuilders next month.<\/p>\n

Claire has qualified for a shot at the British Championship title in both the National Amateur Body-Builders Association (NABBA) and Physical Culture Association (PCA) after placing second in two regional qualifiers.<\/p>\n

In what was only the Ballymena woman’s second and third time to grace the stage as a bodybuilder, the 26-year-old impressed in both the NABBA and PCA competitions which were held in the Ulster Hall, Belfast.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve found it an extreme challenge to step outside my comfort zone and away from my strongwoman competing and training,” said Claire.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Watch: Lewis Crocker’s blistering hand speed and power, and how he dreams of fighting at Windsor Park<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

“But I\u2019ve thoroughly enjoyed the process and I\u2019m just over the moon with the outcome.<\/p>\n

“I am now looking forward to the challenges ahead and making the improvements needed for the next stage for NABBA in Southport and PCA in Birmingham.\u201d<\/p>\n

Claire, who trains at Alistair Smyth’s gym in Cullybackey and the Definition Gym in Ballymena, is delighted at being selected.<\/p>\n

“I am quite new to the sport, so a lot of thanks must go to my training partner Paul Stewart (Overall Mr Universe 2015) for going above and beyond both his roles, and our training partner Robert Allen (Mr Northern Ireland 2016),” she added.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel so lucky and blessed to have the team around me, and I couldn\u2019t do this without them.<\/p>\n

“I have a great team around me, including my partner Paul who does my tanning application, Shania and Mandy McNally for the stage-ready make up, and my mother Lorna Murdock who makes my stunning bikinis, as well as being the best friend and mother anyone could ask for.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Rising star Emma McQuaid setting her sights on CrossFit Games<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

“Massive thanks must also go to Mark and Leigh Getty for putting together a great show for PCA in their second year of Irish Open Championships.<\/p>\n

“And Ruth and Dave Warner (official NABBA NI representative) for their continued efforts year after year in organising and running spectacular shows for NABBA.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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The 26-year-old impressed in recent qualifiers in both NABBA and PCA federations Claire Murdock is hoping to impress at the British Championships(Image: Norm Keilty) County Antrim strongwoman Claire Murdock admits she is relishing the challenge of competing against some of Britain’s top bodybuilders next month. Claire has qualified for a shot at the British Championship […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":267,"featured_media":10782,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[270],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-international-news"],"yoast_head":"\nCo Antrim strongwoman Claire Murdock targeting British Championship success - World Bodybuilding News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=10781\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Co Antrim strongwoman Claire Murdock targeting British Championship success - World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The 26-year-old impressed in recent qualifiers in both NABBA and PCA federations Claire Murdock is hoping to impress at the British Championships(Image: Norm Keilty) County Antrim strongwoman Claire Murdock admits she is relishing the challenge of competing against some of Britain’s top bodybuilders next month. 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