All over the world, bullying is a challenging problem. Many people mostly succumb to it, killing their dreams forever. But a strongman from Burkina Faso never succumb, he used it as a stepping stone to achieving greatness.
Burkina Faso sportsman, Cheick Ahmed al-Hassan Sanou, also known as Iron Biby, has broken world record for log lifting at the Giants Live World in 2021, after lifting 229kg (36st 1lb) log over his head at the competition, breaking the previous world record of 228kg.
On Monday, September 20 at the international airport of Ouagadougou The 29-year-old, who dedicated his trophy to Burkina Faso gave him an exceptional herioc welcome by all the nation. Many other fans of the strongest man in the world, wearing T-shirts with words of recognition like You are the pride of the entire nation” and “Bravo champion” gladly welcomed him, the AFP reported.
After meeting Sports Minister Dominique Nana, Iron Biby said, “It’s a big deal for me because I have been trying to beat this world record since 2018,”AFP reported.
Thanks to him, people know of Burkina Faso and our flag is flying even in parts where you would never expect it. And also thanks to him, the name of Burkina Faso and his name are in the Guinness Book of Records,” a fan, Taleb Kangamba, told AFP.
What makes the African Giant‘s story unique is that he was bullied at school as a large child but did not succumb and became his own confidence.
Born in 1992, his interest has always been in sports and was readily available for any sporting competition at school.
He told BBC, “I wanted to be a sprinter – I had a bit of speed even though I was big.
“But whenever I ran, and my body would wobble, the kids at school would laugh so much and point at me calling me ‘Fat Boy’. It was as if I was entertainment to them, so I gave up on that – but I never stopped wanting to be an athlete,”.
Sprinting, gymnastics, and basketball were among his early passions. He began weightlifting at the age of 17 while attending college in Moncton, Canada after moving from Burkina Faso to continue his secondary education.
In 2013, Biby joined and won his first powerlifting competition at the age of 21. He said that his nickname evolved to “Iron Biby” after his strongman victories. His achievement was followed by another victory in the national championship later that same year.
In 2018, He became the world log lift champion and retained this precious title the following year. In July, he broke the world “axle press” record at the 2021 Strongman Classic in London’s Royal Albert Hall. Finally on 18th September 2021, he has become the world record holder, for 229kg log lift.
