By Staff Reporter
In a competition considered as the hardest strength sport on Earth, Egyptian powerlifter Fatma Elgazzar displayed not only her physical prowess but mental power and faith as well as she competed and excelled in the World Strongman Championship while fasting.
Held on Thursday at Emirates Sports Hotel in Dubai, heavyweight athletes from around the world gathered to demonstrate their superpower, pushing the limits of human potential.
Elgazzar, 38, took part in the Women’s Division under-75kg category, competing against strongwomen and weightlifting champions from Russia, South Africa, and India.
Female competitors – like in the Men’s Division – went through three stages of competition. In the under-75kg category, the first stage was 60kg Log lift (3 repetitions), followed by 130kg Axel deadlift (3 reps); 35kg Dumbbell lift (3 reps; single hand, straight body); and 70kg Stone over 110cm bar (3 reps). There was a two-minute time constraint to complete Stage 1.
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Stage two was 80kg Sandbag carry for 15 metres; followed by 15-metre, 200kg Yoke race; and 150kg Farmer’s walk for another 15 metres. Everything must be done in one minute, and Elgazzar finished Stage two in flat 40 seconds.
Stage three was rowing for a distance of 500 metres on a rowing machine.
Tenacity and determination
Spectators cheered on their favourites and marvelled at the tenacity of the competitors who embraced the ‘no pain, no gain’ mentality. But for Elgazzar, it was not only a display of pure grit and determination. Sporting a blue hijab, she showed that Muslim athletes can actively participate at a strength sport at extreme level while fasting from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan.
During the competition, Elgazzar did not show not even shortness of breath as she talked to Khaleej Times in between breaks. She said she trained intensively for the competition and she has been fasting since day 1 of Ramadan.
“Adjustment during the training was actually hard during the first week as I had to move my practice from morning to evening. But after I established a routine, my body adjusted and I felt even stronger than before. Fasting also helped me get that mental focus,” shared Elgazzar, who before coming to Dubai to compete, won the crown as the ‘Strongest Woman in Egypt’.
Positive sharing of faith
A certified powerlifting trainer and fitness coach back home, Elgazzar also had two objectives in competing in the World Strongman Championship: One was to positively share her faith, that’s why she was fasting; and two was to break cultural barriers and inspire more women to engage in a sport that is often associated with men.
“When I started in this sport, my parents did not agree with me at first but I showed them my determination and I started winning so I got all the love and support from my family,” shared Elgazzar, who is second among five sisters.
