Kharch bahut tha, par khaali haath nahi aaya: Hyd powerlifter Muhammed Rabbani wins gold at world championship

Hyderabad: Coming from a small, broken home in Hyderabad's Fatehnagar, 18-year-old Mohammed Rabbani beat all odds in life and went on to win a gold medal at the World Sub-junior and Junior Equipped Powerlifting Championship 2022 in Turkey.

The world championship took place in Turkey's Istanbul from 27 August to 4 September.

Rabbani started to do powerlifting five years back. "Fitness ke liye karna shuru kiya. Phir aur karne ko laga. Later, mere masterji ne competition ko jaane ko bola (I started powerlifting to stay fit but then I started doing it more. Later, my master asked me to participate in competitions," says Rabbani, tracing his journey in powerlifting. Since then, there has been no looking back. This powerlifter from Telangana has participated in and won medals at the district, state, national, and international championships.

For each of these championships, he says "bahut kharch aayega" (there are a lot of expenses) but he always ensures "khali haath nahi aana" (never return empty-handed). Rabbani who won gold at the international junior world championship in Istanbul participated in the 53kg category. He is training under coach Anand Raj.

Rabbani still recalls the first district-level competition he attended. "Bahut dar lag raha tha, bade bade khiladiyon ko dekhke (I was scared looking at all the big players)," he says. But much to his surprise, he won a gold at that event and this boosted his confidence in powerlifting.

Financial hardships have always troubled Rabbani. In 2021, he could not attend the Asian Championship because of lack of money. He recalls with regret how difficult the entire process of participating in a competition is. "Kuch din ke liye rest karna, phir practise karna, aur accha diet maintain karna, travel expenses, bahut kharch hota hain (I rest for a few days then start practicing again. There are a lot of expenses involved in maintaining a good diet and for travel," he explains.

Rabbani's father Muhammed Haji is a daily wage worker and his mother Asima Begum is a homemaker. Nowadays, his father is unable to go work regularly as he has become old.

Rabbani does not know how he is going to manage the money for his future competitions and for his family. He just knows his goal—to win a medal at the Commonwealth Powerlifting Championship in Auckland, New Zealand set to be held in November 2022.