Bodybuilding in the Arab world.

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EARLIER THIS YEAR, some 50 bodybuilders from across the Middle East region participated in the inaugural Dubai International Bodybuilding Championships, a first for this Gulf state nation. Held in the Dubai World Trade Center under the patronage of Sheikh Rashid bin Hamdan Al Maktoum, the 'muscle man' competition saw participants from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, India and Iran vie for top honours in three internationally recognised weight classes, 75kg, 80kg and over 85kg. Later in the year, the Arab Bodybuilding Championships held in Syria in May, served to further highlight the progress Arab bodybuilders are making both regionally and internationally.

"I've been in Dubai for the past six months," the winning 75kg class international bodybuilder Egyptian Sabri Fadhel, an Abu Dhabi-based weight and fitness coach, explained. "It's good to have such competitions with good prize money as the motivation to win then becomes even better." Sabri was referring to the Dh30,000 ($8,250) prize for his efforts, donated by sponsors Al Boom Holdings with Khansaheb and Bridgestone Tyres as co-sponsors. Additional prizes of Dh20,000($5,500), and Dh10,000 ($2,750) were also awarded for those placed second and third in each class, a not inconsiderable sure for runners-up in the world of bodybuilding.

That such an event could be held in Dubai is testimony to the accelerating interest in physical training and health in general in the region. This has not gone unnoticed by the world's manufacturers of nutritional supplements and sports equipment; the Sportex 2007 exhibition last November attracted manufacturers and nutrition supplement distributors from 12 foreign countries. Held in connection with the MEFIT 07, the Sportex exhibition gave Middle East audiences a platform on which worldclass physical trainers, nutritionists, physiotherapists, weight loss consultants and child fitness experts showcased their talents, including health programmes and an array of modern training equipment.

Strength sports have always held a special place in Arab and Persian cultures. Some, such as Iran's 'Zurkhaneh'--the name means 'House of Strength'--go back to 19th Century Persia, their practice being as much a spiritual ritual as a programme of strength exercises. In its modern day practice religious overtones are prevalent, the combination of physical push-ups, dervish-like dancing and the juggling of heavy wooden clubs considered as much a spiritual cleansing as a physical workout. Undertaken in an octagonal pit and practised by individuals or groups of bare-chested practitioners, Zurkhaneh is both a personal and combination activity. In a country where Olympic wrestling has a large popular following, the practice of Zurkhaneh exercises are considered a necessary warm-up for the more serious sport of one-on-one Olympic combat. That its practice is allied to historical traditions only adds to its appeal, the seeking of spiritual enlightenment as much a part of everyday life as that of seeking good health.

The universal appeal of 'pumping iron' is best illustrated by the fact that even in violence-wracked Iraq, new gyms catering for young men interested in building up their bodies are springing up and proving highly profitable business ventures.

"The demand for this sport increased after the war," explained 26-year-old Saif Aymen, proprietor of the Olympia Gym in Baghdad. "I decided to open the gym because it's a good way to make money very fast." As part of his business plan Aymen is targeting young men considering a career in the Iraqi security services, a well muscled body being a surefire way of attracting the attention of police and army recruiters at sign-up stations.

Unlike in the West where women are as much part of the bodybuilding scene as men, the pursuit of muscular bodies in the Arab world is restricted to males. Few if any women's muscle competitions are held; the spectacle of muscular women parading their bodies on a stage before a specialised audience would be social taboo. However, that is not to say that female health issues are not taken just as seriously in the Middle East as in the West; the growing sales of women's beauty products, vitamins and nutritional supplements attest to this.

On 5 September 2007, Latakia (Syria) hosted the International Federation of Bodybuilding (IFBB) Mediterranean competition in which 11 countries participated. Athletes from Egypt, Spain, Cyprus, Malta, Italy, Syria, Tunisia, Libya, Morocco, Lebanon and Palestine participated in this highly professional event held in the scenic tourist location. Notable was the fact that Syria and Egypt were placed first and second in the team competition, with Spain taking third. Televised live by Saudi and Syrian television, the competition, under the patronage of the prime minister of Syria, Dr. Mohamed Nagy El Otry, featured a professional array of spectator events in the 5,000 seating capacity Al Assad sports centre. Personal interviews with many of the winners were featured in television programmes, proving hugely popular with Arab audiences across the Middle East.

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Men's professional bodybuilding is a highly individualistic activity requiring an athlete's constant attention to nutritional and training disciplines, thus requiring a steady source of financing. Now that modern gymnasiums are part and parcel of every tourist hotel in the Gulf States, Arab bodybuilding practitioners are more able to utilise the most modern of equipment in pursuit of their dreams, this satisfying one part of the equation required for international success. With contests such as the Dubai International Bodybuilding Championships now also paying substantial cash prizes to the winners, more and more young Arab bodybuilders are sure to gravitate to the sport for both its physical and financial rewards. Of particular concern to the organisers will be the use of human growth hormones and steroids however, a practice now banned, tested for and regulated by reputable contest authorities such as the IFBB.

The Dubai International Bodybuilding contest marked the coming out of the sport of bodybuilding in the Arab world. With more contests being promoted by reputable governing bodies and with increasing governmental financial support, the sport is sure to grow, the entry list certain to have a far greater percentage of indigenous contestants in the near future. As such Arab bodybuilding will take its place with the best in the world, the natural physical advantages of the people of the region a solid base for a well trained body.