Highlights
- Samar El Hassan's story began with the simple goal of losing a few kilograms of weight at the age of 50.
- She didn't think of sports as an entry point to compete for championships, but coaches noticed her perseverance and advised her to experiment.
- Ms El Hassan chose the National Association of Bodybuilders (NABBA), the same union through which Arnold Schwarzenegger competed.
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In the years leading up to her fiftieth birthday, Samar El Hassan said she had decided to focus on taking care of her body and herself after devoting more than half of her life to caring for her two children, her husband and her home.
The story of Ms El Hassan, an accountant at the Lebanese Embassy in Canberra, began with wanting to shed a few kilos as she entered middle age.
But her new regime quickly turned into a passion for body sculpting and muscle development to become one of the few women in the Arab community in Australia participating in bodybuilding competitions.
Ms El Hassan spoke to SBS Arabic24 Program Director Silva Mezher about her journey, which can be described as unique, and how she challenged one of the stereotypes of women in her conservative society.
“When I gave birth to my children, Khaled and Farah, my focus was on securing an environment that provided them with care and education, and when they grew up, I felt like I had time to look for another source of happiness and psychological comfort, so I started exercising,” she said.
Ms El Hassan’s journey into the world of bodybuilding since then is living proof that age really is just a number.
Samar El Hassan with her children. Source: Samar El Hassan
“I started running and then I joined a gym and through my passion and discipline in everything I do, I started to see the results in my body and that's where the idea of competing arose,” Ms El Hassan said.
She said she did not think of sports as an entry point to compete for titles and championships, but the coaches around her had noted her dedication and advised her to think about competing.
“Perseverance is part of my personality," says Ms El Hassan, who does not deny that she was well aware of the challenges.
“As you approach the age of 50, many things change in the body such as metabolism, and muscle development becomes more difficult.
"The challenge was for myself: to achieve what I wanted."
Her training regime transformed her body into a fat-free muscle mass, assisted by her other exercise of going running.
The trainers believed in my abilities more than I did.
Everything she was doing suggested that bodybuilding was the inevitable choice for a woman who was not afraid of pushing her boundaries.
“I started sports without a coach, but, when I decided to compete, I had a coach who supervised my diet,” she said.
Samar El Hassan has thrown herself into the sport of bodybuilding. Source: Samar El Hassan
Ms El Hassan says training as a professional athlete requires a lot of sacrifice, from eating at specific times to waking up early every day.
"Three years ago, I was eating the same food at the same time day in, day out," she said.
She says she has been committed to six meals a day for years, but now finds a new taste every day.
“Every time we go out for dinner, I have to calculate how many calories I consume, but I don't deprive myself of anything,” she said.
Her first bodybuilding competition was held in October 2020.
“I entered three federations and started my career in sport and fitness, but the organisers found that I had enough muscle, fitness and exercise to take part in top-tier competitions such as Model Figure,” she said.
In my first contest, I won the bronze medal.
Ms El Hassan chose the NABBA, the same organisation through which former Mr Universe and Mr Olympia, politician and actor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, had competed.
“I was hoping to be able to compete for another year, but couldn't because I was studying a finance course. Nevertheless, I still adhered to the same system I used to have for daily food and exercise,” she said.
These competitions, which make it imperative for contestants to highlight the body's muscle definition, are in stark contrast to the traditions of the conservative society from which Ms El Hassan hails.
“The experience at first was very scary,” she said.
But she says the most difficult aspect was appearing on stage in a bikini to be judged.
Samar El Hassan says one of challenges of the sport is being judged while standing on a stage in a bikini. Source: Samar El Hassan
To go up on stage in a bikini to be judged on the basis of my appearance was hard for me.
But she says it was a fundamental part of her new sport which she had had to adapt to.
“On my first appearance, my children told me: I was really the best,” she said.
With her achievements, aged now in her early 50s, making her an inspiration to many, SBS Arabic24 asked Ms El Hassan what age meant to her.
“Ageing is a challenge. The most important thing is that we plan our paths with milestones,” she said.
Ms El Hassan, who says she knows what she wants, tells every woman in the middle of life’s journey: “This stage of your life is the best to really get to know who you are.”
