Pakistani bodybuilder hits back at critics after finishing fourth

Pakistanis should support their fellow national, says dissappointed Salman Ahmed

KARACHI: Pakistani athlete Salman Ahmad, who clinched the Mr Musclemania title in Las Vegas last year, responded to his critics after he came fourth in Musclemania Pro competition on Saturday.

The 25-year-old managed to be among the top six finalists at the competition on his debut as a pro body-builder.

Ahmad said he felt disappointed at how his countrymen commented on social media after he failed to win the competition.

In a video message on his Facebook page, the athlete responded to his critics by saying that Pakistanis should support their fellow national, who is competing on an international stage.

“I did my best and worked hard to reach where I am today,” he said. “Not everyone knows what we go through when we maintain our diet carefully for six months at a time.”

“This was a big thing for me, people are only looking at the fourth position, but they don’t understand that it was my debut at this,” Ahmed told The Express Tribune. “It’s been less than 12 hours since the competition ended, and I couldn’t sleep at all, just knowing that I was among the best bodybuilders in the world.”



Ahmed said there were 25 top bodybuilders selected from a pool of more than 40 participants, while around 19 were also disqualified as their dope tests came out positive.

Out of the top 25, top 10 were shortlisted and from that top 10 top six were taken as the finalists.

However, Ahmad still thanked his supporters for their prayers and urged people not to hurt his image as he has worked hard towards building one.

“I would like to thank all those who prayed for me and supported me,” he said. “And, I can only request people back home to not tarnish my reputation and my image.”

Ahmad was alone in the crowd last year when he became the first Pakistani to win the Musclemania world bodybuilding title in Las Vegas, unable to afford an entourage of managers, coaches, promoters like his fellow competitors.



Apart from bodybuilding, he also holds a Masters in Human Resource Management from the University of Punjab.

Ahmed will be returning to Pakistan on July 10 from Miami.

Earlier, Atif Anwar made headlines when he won the Arnold Classic Australia last year, but he is representing Australia at the international events, while Masoom Butt, another Pakistani bodybuilder, went to Ireland and represents his adopted country now.

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