- Title: It takes eight chickens a day to become Africa's strongest man
- Date: 14th February 2020
- Summary: BOBO-DIOULASSO, BURKINA FASO (RECENT - JANUARY 17, 2020) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** LOG LIFT WORLD CHAMPION, CHEICK AHMED AL-HASSAN SANOU, IRON BIBY, PUTTING ON ELBOW SLEEVES IRON BIBY PUTTING POWERLIFTING BELT IRON BIBY SCREAMING AND PREPARING TO LIFT WEIGHT IRON BIBY'S LIFTING WEIGHT IRON BIBY LIFTING 250 KILOS/CREW CHEERING IRON BIBY FIST BUMPING CREW
- Embargoed: 28th February 2020 11:20
- Keywords: Iron Biby Strongman competitor from powerlifting competition
- Location: BOBO-DIOULASSO, BURKINA FASO, UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION, INDIANA, UNITED STATES, LEEDS, UNITED KINGDOM
- City: BOBO-DIOULASSO, BURKINA FASO, UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION, INDIANA, UNITED STATES, LEEDS, UNITED KINGDOM
- Country: Burkina Faso
- Topics: Sport,Weightlifting
- Reuters ID: LVA001C0L2L3R
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: In the courtyard of his house in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, Cheick Ahmed Al-Hassan Sanou, is preparing for his next record.
Iron Biby, as he is better known in Strongman competitions, puts on his elbow sleeves, fits his weightlifting belt and motivates himself before lifting 250 kilograms on the bench press surrounded by friends and fans in the gym he set up in his own backyard.
In April 2019, Iron Biby won the log lifting world title setting his own personal record at 220 kilograms, 8 kilograms short of the current world record. His next attempt will be at the World Log Lift Challenge in Leeds on April 6, 2020.
In his latest training session Iron Biby lifted 250 kilograms on the bench press. If he can manage that sitting down, he says, it means that standing up he could lift up to 240 kilograms.
The 27-year old weighs 187 kilograms and he explains the simple secrete of his success.
"Work, well, when you work, you get results. I never tell myself, 'it's true, you can have talent, I have natural strength and everything'. But you have to work as well, so that everything is perfect. So winning is a feat, but maintaining victories is even harder," he said.
Iron Biby struggled with weight issues when he was growing up. School mates made fun of him until he discovered his natural strength when he pushed a boy who was bothering him. He said the boy flew across the room, which took both of them by surprise. The boy stopped bothering him.
"I have always been passionate about sport, since childhood, I admit that I almost tried every sport. But my physical shape did not allow me to excel in other sports. And with other kids mocking me, during my childhood, I tried to find something, a sport, in which I could be the best. So I think that it was by looking that I found it," he said.
At age 17, he travelled to Canada to study and signed up at a gym to lose weight. He failed to lose weight but succeeded in becoming even stronger.
In 2013 he entered his first powerlifting competition and won. Now an athlete recognised globally, Iron Biby has a strong fan base in his home town. When he walks in the streets of Bobo-Dioulasso, young people flock around him hoping to get a selfie with him.
"It is a blessing from God. It is very encouraging, and it gives me the strength to work even more than before and above all not to disappoint them. They are counting on me and the work is always to carry the flag of my country high," he said.
Exercising is not the only ingredient for success, Iron Biby says an adequate diet is key. He personally eats eight chickens a day for protein intake when he is preparing for a competition.
He is also the first Burkinabe to get his name in the Guinness Book of records. He lifted a person weighing 60 kilograms 69 times in just one minute in 2018. The next year, he broke his own record.
"It was a great accomplishment for me. I continued to work and in 2019 I was able to break my own record, and instead of 69 repetitions, I did 82 repetitions in one minute," he said.
Iron Biby opens the doors of his gym to youth in his neighbourhood, they often come and ask for advice on how to get fit.
"Iron Biby is like a mentor to me. Since we follow his competitions abroad, he's like the only Burkinabe who has raised our flag up high. So he's a humble super star. That is why, as youths, we try and get close to him. WE have also seen that he is a good person, he is honest. As you can see, his door is wide open to everyone," said Aristide Zerbo, a local fan.
Iron Biby's ambition knows no limits, after breaking the world record for log lifting, Iron Biby's goal today is to become the strongest man on earth.
(Thiam Ndiaga, Christophe Van Der Perre, Yvonne Bell) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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