A new year, a new start. A time when thoughts are centered on change, self improvement, setting and smashing goals and becoming the KING of your reality.
This year we focus on a selected group of individuals from the KING affiliate stable, all who have started from the bottom and have risen to become KING’s of their field. Inspirational stories, challenging journeys and ambitious rises – these are the faces of a new generation - #FITFORAKING
Jay Jay Chris and Cyrus Marinay are straight up legit - the real deal in this fake era. Founding members of the notorious Bar Sparta Calisthenics street workout crew, they have risen from the days of rudimental knowledge of basic muscle ups to becoming figureheads in one of the world’s fastest growing fitness phenomena.
The beginning, as is often the case, was nothing out of the ordinary, moreover it was the personalities involved that make this a remarkable rise. Both Small Spartan (Jay) and Star Boy (Cyrus) were both inspired by witnessing a simple muscle up. Jay at one of his first gym sessions, witnessed a body builder pounding the pull ups whilst Cyrus working as a staging scaffolder at the Reading festival saw a co-worker using the scaff as a pull up bar.
These encounters were enough to inspire the boys to research the technique, which then led them down the rabbit hole to Calisthenics, the movement and the lifestyle and a passion for self-improvement.
Its one thing reading about something, it’s another going all in on it. The motivation was multi-faceted and the boys were driven by not only the aesthetic of fining tuning their physiques but also strongly as a way to help with mental health and dealing with tough situations and the strive to pursue clean living.
The Calisthenics scene was in its early days. There was no central organization, Jay and Cyrus didn’t know one another, yet separately they began to use the limited information out there to learn and hone their techniques and craft. It wasn’t until the Brixton street gym opened a Calisthenics dedicated gym that the scene started to come together and amongst many other faces, the boys were invited to meet and train at the venue. This is where Bar Sparta was born.
Essentially it was a coming together of like-minded individuals - highly ambitious, motivated with a will to push their limits. As Star Boy says ‘ we uplifted each other’ and with that Calisthenics saw a new crew take shape with some of the strongest street workout athletes on the scene.
In 7 short years from not knowing about Calisthenics Jay and Cyrus have spearheaded Bar Sparta into one of the most established teams in the world alongside the infamous Bar Stars from the USA.
As well as always being picked to judge and host international competition, the guys also boast a host of titles to their names.
Small Spartan (Jay) has won the UK champs 3x in his weight division, is 2x world featherweight champion and was 4th at the prestigious Russian world champs, whilst Star Boy (Cyrus) holds a ‘no holds barred’ title for the Calisthenics Universal League and is now considered the no1 contender in light middleweight by the official World Calisthenics Organisation
As well as being certified members of the KING affiliates dating back to the Bahrain 2016 World Cup where we decked the crew who took 2nd place, their growing profiles, particularly across social media has led to expanding to working with brands such as Bulk Powders, Gym Shark, Box Raw and growing Personal training businesses.
As we exit a year to forget for many, 2021 is now the year to level up. So look no further than Jay, Cyrus and the Bar Sparta crew as testament to how you can move from that regular weekly gym session to inspiring millions around the world to elevate their physical, mental and spiritual well being.
Ready to take the throne #FITFORAKING
For more #FITFORAKING KING affiliate stories check out the > #fitforaking page