When Chris Faildo tearfully talked about it being "a long road" to the National Physique Committee's Team Universe title, you got the feeling the 4,968 miles from Honolulu to New York were the least of it.

The 12-hour trip from Honolulu International Airport to the stage at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center in Manhattan, where he was crowned as the winner of the prestigious amateur bodybuilding competition Saturday, it seemed, might have been the easiest part.

More than words, the tsunami of emotion that saw Faildo fling himself onto the stage floor and pound it in untethered celebration said a lot about the improbable 26-year journey for the 41-year old printing company representative, and the validation of a steroid-free path.

It underlined a story as inspirational for its persistence and dedication to principle as its triumph.

"You don't see that much emotion, usually, so, obviously, that (title) meant a lot to him," said chief judge Jim Rockell, a veteran of 30 years of competition. So evocative was the awards scene that an emcee said he was "crying" too. Nor were they alone among the sellout crowd of more than 1,000.

The 5-foot-4 Faildo won not only his own welterweight (154 to 165 pounds) division but the overall title of the event, a first in the event's 15-year history, and rare for anyone below the heavyweight class. Moreover, he did it at an advanced age, and after an extended absence.

Faildo, once a regular at the NPC, hadn't been back since 2003, and a lot of people outside of Hawai'i assumed he had called it a still-brilliant career. "Everybody thought I was in hibernation, packed it up," Faildo told MDTV and the crowd. "I'm 41, I'm proud to say that. I went back home, in the dungeon, in Hawai'i, Gold's Gym ..."

"What he did was amazing," Rockell said. "I've seen Chris in competition before but this time he really brought it a long way. He was so enthusiastic, so dynamic. He made all that time and work pay off."

Just as important, Faildo said he did it his way throughout. Even when it wasn't always easy. There were times, Faildo has said, when such was the sharpness of competition and the diesel drive to excel that he considered experimenting with performance-enhancing substances, but never succumbed. Over the years his resolve grew even when it seemed the competitive window was shutting.

"I'm a lifetime natural bodybuilder," Faildo told MDTV and the crowd, "and I'm very proud of it."

Now, more than ever.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.