PHOTO: FILE
KARACHI: Muhammad Furqan and Zeeshan Mehmood will be making their international debuts when they take the stage at the 50th Asian Bodybuilding Championship in Bhutan today.
The Pakistan Bodybuilding Federation (PBBF) is fielding three participants, with Muhammad Afaq being the third, and PBBF President Sheikh Farooq Iqbal expects the contingent to ‘come back with some medals’.
Pakistan had won one silver and one bronze in the last edition of the event and Iqbal is confident that this year’s line-up would add to that tally.
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“We have two new bodybuilders, Zeeshan and Furqan, whereas Afaq has competed at an international event before,” said Iqbal. “We are hoping for the best results. The competition will be tough but they have a good chance of coming back with some medals.”
Talking about how steroid-usage has plagued the sport in recent times when four athletes lost their lives due to heart problems earlier this year, Iqbal said that in order to avoid such events the PBBF has laid down strict guidelines for bodybuilders to follow, while the three bodybuilders travelling to Bhutan are ‘clean’ from all drugs.
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“They [bodybuilders] will be tested during the championship. We have made sure that our bodybuilders are clean and they also have the idea that they can get caught if they resort to such activities, so they will be careful about it,” said Iqbal.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 3rd, 2016.
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