SEXY, confident, smart.

Many of the 25 finalists nominated by the public for SPH Magazine NUYOU's 6th Men We Love contest held at St James Power House fit the description well.

From a 21-year-old student (Adler Poh) to a 41-year-old engineer (Gan Cheng Kah), the audience of about 600 had a wide range to choose the winner from.

Mr Michael Lin, 25, wowed audience and fans in the corner with his sexy strut, while Mr Alvin Wong, 33, seduced the ladies with promises of free consultations at his plastic surgery clinic.

Soulful singing

Mr Desmond Wong, 28, even brought tears to a girl on stage when he serenaded her with a heartfelt rendition of a popular song - in both Japanese and Mandarin - as a showcase of his talent.

But the man who really stood out for women tonight was the man who was too modest to try.

Snatching the winning prize worth $2,000 of Puma and assorted beauty products, and the subsidiary awards of most stylish and audience favourite is 28-year-old university graduate Liu Wen Xiang.

When I approached him before the contest for an interview, his smile was shy and unassuming.

'Everyone has their strong points,' he said when asked to predict the winner.

'And I'm not here to win, just for the fun experience,' he added.

Already, his humility sets him apart from the other finalists.

On stage, Wen Xiang still sports the same shy smile. Perhaps made more shy after the host heckled him to take off his shirt.

His curved biceps and washboard abs, however, revealed that he had nothing to be shy about.

A sporty athlete, Wen Xiang plays tennis, rollerblades and swims. On top of that, he goes to the gym regularly.

But he's not the only looker, evident from the cat-calls and whistles when other unfortunate - fortunate for the ladies - contestants are asked to strip.

Mr Bryan Chin, 28, winner of the most sensual award, showed us that he's built for amazing eye candy as well.

So what is it about quiet Wen Xiang that enticed Singaporean women (and even some men) in the crowd to surround and mark him as their audience favourite with little orange stickers?

It's quite clear - men they love are soft-spoken and modest.

And maybe, possess a hot bod.

This article was first published in The New Paper on Oct 30, 2008.