Nasser El Sonbati: scientist and athlete. El Sonbati, Nasser Nasser El Sonbati in professional rankings

Hey Ya! Another topic about a most interesting person, an Athlete with a capital A.

Anthropometry:

• Height 180 cm;
• Competition weight 123 kg;
• Shin 54 cm;
• Biceps 58 cm;
• (I couldn't find anything else...)

“Favorite reading: as I grew older, I began to prefer newspapers and magazines to books. Apparently because I travel a lot. I'm interested in news from places I've once visited.
The most valuable thing in life: your health and that of your loved ones. Personally, I have never risked my health for victories in bodybuilding. Strength and health are the greatest male capital, without which you cannot accumulate any other capital.”

Often you just have to say the word “bodybuilder” and the imagination immediately draws an image of a hefty fellow with only one gyrus in his head, concerned only with how to lift a heavier barbell and fill his belly more. Such a guy, of course, has no use for intelligence. And wow, there was a bodybuilder, and not an ordinary jock, but an Athlete with a capital A, a real champion, who completely refuted this stereotype. His name is Nasser El Sonbati. Sonbati is a very smart and educated person. He has degrees in history, political science and sociology, speaks seven languages ​​fluently, and at the same time he is perhaps the most colorful figure in professional bodybuilding today (this is about the question of “dumb jocks”).

Sonbati was born on October 13, 1965 in the family of a poor Egyptian engineer. However, Sonbati can only be considered half Egyptian, since thanks to his mother, Croatian blood also flows in his veins. Quite soon, the international family moved to Germany, to the city of Stuttgart, where the future bodybuilding monster spent his youth. Nasser did very well in high school because he knew that a good education was his only chance to achieve something in life. A “golden” diploma from the gymnasium gave him the opportunity to continue his studies, and he spent seven years at the University of Augsburg, studying all the sciences mentioned above.

Sonbati has been involved in sports since childhood: football, rowing, swimming, wrestling. Bodybuilding did not appeal to him. Nasser recalls that at the age of 17 he first saw photographs of bodybuilders, and he really didn’t like them. But then, already as a student, he nevertheless looked into a nearby gym and got involved in training. Sonbati turned out to be a gifted athlete: his muscles grew by leaps and bounds! (yeah))))) Inspired by success, he tries to compete at local competitions in Germany and fails. Then Nasser chooses a different path and goes to compete in Yugoslavia. And he manages to make it to the prize-winners.

Nasser is no longer the same as before, he cannot imagine his life without bodybuilding and is seeking to obtain a pro card, giving him the right to compete in professional tournaments. In 1990, Sonbati made his debut at the Finnish Grand Prix and took eighth place. Frankly speaking, not a very successful start, but failures only strengthen him. In 1991, he decided to perform at the prestigious “Night of Champions” in New York. Another misfire: the 110-kilogram Sonbati did not make it into the top 15. The judges simply did not notice him, never calling him out for comparison with other athletes. Nasser rightly suggested that, apparently, he was too thin and brought 133 kg to the next “Night of Champions”! Sonbati recalls this performance with a smile: “I was “a little” smooth, and the judges again left me outside the top 15. The next “Night of Champions” turned out much more successful for me, since I stayed at home. But Nasser’s performance at the “Night champions"-94 created a sensation, as he managed to take second place, losing only to the rising star Mike Francois, with whom he became close friends. The 112-kilogram Sonbati amazed the judges and spectators with super-reliable, hard muscles and very, very decent dimensions. They started talking about Nasser, he his name appeared on the pages of Kachkov's magazines, and most importantly, he received the right to take part in the Mr. Olympia competition. Seventh place at Olympia inspired Nasser and strengthened his growing ambitions. In preparation for these competitions, Nasser lost his muscle size “a little.” (an ultra-hard carbohydrate-free “pit”, when during the last week before the competition, while at the house of his friend Mike Francois Sonbati, he consumed only 50 grams of carbohydrates per day, it cost him a loss of 13 kg of “mass”), and therefore immediately after the Olympia he was head over heels went into training, wanting to show the whole world the new Sonbati next spring.
The following May, just 8 months after the Olympia, Nasser put up 121.5 kg of pure muscle at the Houston Pro Invitational. Spectators and judges were shocked: no one could understand how he managed to do it. Of course, Sonbati won this tournament, simply overwhelming Vince Taylor, who was considered the favorite, with his volume. “Vince and I are friends, and I respect him very much, but this was the very moment when I wanted Vince to start respecting me, remembering the ups and downs of the fight at the tournament in Houston.” Nasser explained the metamorphosis that happened to him by two circumstances: firstly, by the fact that he, together with his life partner named Bizera, moved to permanent residence in the USA (his choice fell on the Californian town of San Diego, which is very close to the legendary Santa Barbara ), where he had new opportunities in terms of training (in the States, unlike Germany, gyms are much better equipped, and they work almost around the clock, in addition, America is famous for its gigantic assortment of sports and dietary nutrition), and secondly, because he began to prepare for competitions differently. “I’ve been very big in the off-season before,” he admits. My usual mass weight ranges around 145-150 kg. However, before I could lose about forty kilograms in preparation for the tournament. In 1995, everything changed, and I lost no more than 20 kg, taking into account dehydration.

What's in the package?

Three weeks after the competition in Houston, Sonbati easily wins the Night of Champions and becomes one of the main contenders for the Mr. Olympia title. Olympia-95 left Sonbati with conflicting feelings: on the one hand, he became third, losing only to the British monster Dorian Yates and the American Kevin Levrone, and it was he who received the most applause, but on the other hand, he felt that he could have been first. However, speaking on the pages of popular Kachkov publications, primarily Flex, he did not allow himself a single malicious remark towards his rivals or judges, thereby earning a reputation as a gentleman, noting only that even Yates can be beaten. Nasser is told that he has a weak back, compared to Yates, which is sorely lacking in detail, and for the next year he fanatically bombs his back. As a result, Nasser appeared at Olympia 96 in fantastic shape, with an improved back and weighing about 127 kg! Yates, with his 116 kg, is already quite lost against his background. However, Sonbati is again placed third after Yates and Ray.

This news shocked the public so much that the audience, standing, expressed their indignation with a loud roar until Nasser calmed everyone down. No, he didn’t want conflicts and scandalous popularity, continuing to be a good guy in bodybuilding and facing the blows of fate with a smile. Sonbati received one of the most sensitive blows in October 1996, after his triumphant performance in the series of Grand Prix tournaments following the Olympia, where he won three victories: in the Czech Republic, Switzerland and Russia. Nasser was told that his Olympia performance had been annulled because his blood test tested positive for diuretics. Disqualification automatically deprived Sonbati of 30 thousand dollars, however, even here he resisted the vicissitudes of fate: I learned that the test would be carried out too late, and nothing could be corrected.

However, when in the spring of next year at the Arnold Classic tournament, the second most important competition in professional bodybuilding, the victory and a check for 100 thousand dollars were given to the elegant, but very nondescript American Flex Wheeler compared to the 130-kilogram Sonbati, Nasser’s patience ran out. He made a sharp statement on the pages of Flex in which he branded everyone and everything: both the judges and his friends and rivals on stage: “If you don’t talk about the fact that you have weaknesses, then the rest will also keep quiet about it.”. To tell the truth, today’s professional bodybuilding would lose a lot in the person of Sonbati. Nasser is a personality with a capital P, and that says it all. It’s not for nothing that not a single self-respecting Kachkov magazine can do without his photographs or articles about him, and Nasser has already appeared on the cover of Flex five times! The fact that Sonbati is one of the most prominent figures in the world of pros is recognized even by Austrian Oak Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has fired many critical arrows at modern pros. And the point here is not even Sonbati’s education and intelligence, his ability to communicate with people. Among other things, Sonbati is interesting because his judgments are sharp and frank and often diverge from generally accepted ones. For example, he refused to be the subject of a popular traditional column in Flex magazine, which provides biographical information about professional champions, as well as their answers to the questions: What is your favorite color, what is your favorite car, etc. “I don’t give a damn what color my car, says Sonbati, black, red or white. And I don’t have a favorite movie. I don’t want to repeat after someone, like a parrot, that my favorite vacation spot is Hawaii. I’ve been to Hawaii ten times. It’s just boring there. And in general, people are interested in their own passions, and not mine or anyone else’s.”

Uh, come on, let's figure it out, yeah)))

Sonbati is a strong strongman who prefers to train with heavy weights. If I don't lift heavy weights, I lose stiffness pretty quickly, much faster than other, less massive athletes, he admits. Nasser usually trains 4-5 days a week, working 1-2 muscle groups in one session, usually one large and one small. However, it is impossible to present Sonbati’s clear training scheme here, since he, listening to his body, constantly rearranges his training schedule. For example, in one session he can work the chest and biceps, and the next time he will train the deltoids along with the chest muscles. Sonbati also changes complexes for individual muscle groups all the time. For example, he can start training the same chest with barbell presses on an incline bench, or maybe with dips. However, the exercises themselves almost always remain the same: “When you rush between different movements, it is quite difficult to track progress in strength indicators.”

The End!!!​

P.S. Read books and learn languages ​​- you will be like this guy!​

Anthropometric data:

• height: 180 cm;
• weight (competition): 120-130 kg;
• weight (off-season): 162 kg;
• calf volume: 54 cm;
• biceps volume: 58 cm.

Biography

Nasser El Sonbati was born in Stuttgart, Germany on October 15, 1965. He took his first steps in sports in such sports as rowing, swimming, and then in football. He came to the gym at the age of 20 while studying at the University of Augsburg, where, as in sports, he eventually achieved serious results, categorically dispelling the myth of “jocks” as narrow-minded, unintellectual people. The athlete perfectly mastered seven languages ​​and could communicate in a conversational style in four more. In the field of history, sociology and political economy, the athlete received several scientific degrees in different specializations.

Having come to bodybuilding, Nasser El Sonbati showed excellent results, both strength and physiological, from the first weeks of training. Excellent progress allowed him to enter the competition just a month after the start of training, where he was in sixth place among two dozen competitors, amazing the professionals present at the tournament. Naturally, such success gave additional motivation to the athlete, who, it is worth noting, was already independent of his parents at the age of 20, paying for his training and studies on his own.

​

The emergence of Nasser El Sonbati on the competitive scene was noticed by Joe Weider, the founder of the IFBB, who recognized the potential of the aspiring athlete and, upon graduation, invited him to move to the United States and continue training under the guidance of a coach. In 1990, five years after the start of training, the athlete received a professional bodybuilder card, having shown excellent form at an international tournament in Finland. Since 1994, he began performing at Olympia, in which he participated nine times, taking third place twice and second place once.

In total, Nasser El Sonbatty took part in more than fifty significant international bodybuilding competitions during his competitive career, including becoming first six times, ten times second and fifteen times third.

Death of an athlete

On March 20, 2013, foreign media, both sports and secular, spread the news that Nasser El Sonbatty, one of the world's recognized bodybuilding geniuses, had died of kidney failure in San Diego at the age of 47.

The tragic death was preceded by unbearable pain that lasted for almost ten years, which forced the athlete to retire from competitive sports in 2005. For a long time, doctors tried to fight the character of the athlete, who, despite medical contraindications, continued active training.

Best Achievements

Winner:

Nasser El Sonbati was born in 1965 on October 13th. Since his mother was Croatian and his father was Egyptian, it can be considered that Sonbati has two bloods flowing in his veins. A little later, the international family moves to the beautiful town of Germany - Stuttgart. The youth of the growing bodybuilding athlete passed in this rather quiet city. Having entered the gymnasium, Nasser did well in all subjects, knowing that this was a real chance to achieve something in this difficult life. Having received a diploma with honors from the gymnasium, Sonbati continued his studies at the University of Augsburg for seven years.

Body-building

Rowing, football, wrestling, swimming are Nasser’s favorite activities since childhood. Since childhood, photographs of bodybuilders and the sport itself did not attract Nasser, but still, he went to the gym once. He liked bodybuilding because his muscles began to grow after the first workouts. Having tried to win local competitions, Sonbati fails and decides to go to Yugoslavia, where he becomes a prize-winner for the first time.

The athlete’s views and life have changed a lot. Now his goal was a pro card, which would give him the opportunity to participate in professional competitions. The athlete’s next beautiful victory was eighth place in Finland in 1990. After this, Sonbati performs in New York, where, with a mark of 110 kg, he looks quite thin and therefore the judges do not notice him. This is what the athlete himself suggested, and for the next tournament he claimed 133 kg for victory. " Now I was smooth“says the athlete. Therefore, he again failed to break into the top 15 leaders. Competitions became a big breakthrough in the life of an athlete “ Night of Champions", in which Sonbati suffered only defeats until 1994. But this time everything is different! Having 112 kg of weight and simply unique body contour, the athlete is one of the outsiders. Comes in second place. He failed to beat only Mike Francois, who became a close friend of Nasser. This all led to Sonbati's fame. They wrote about him in magazines, but the main prize for the athlete was the opportunity to participate in the “” competition.

Having achieved seventh place, Sonbati was a little disappointed. This all happened due to losing 13 kg of weight before the competition. He consumed only 50 grams of carbohydrates per day. This led to weight loss. But the athlete did not despair and in the spring he will present the world with a new champion!

Death

Not long ago, on March 21, 2013, disappointing news was heard. Nasser El Sonbati has died. The cause of death was health problems caused by kidney failure. It’s a pity that the life of such a wonderful person and athlete was cut short so early, at only 47 years old.

(Nasser El Sonbaty) Germany

Height: 180 cm

Competition weight: 123 kg

Shin: 54 cm

Official website http://www.hugenasser.com

Nasser El Sonbati was born on October 15, 1965 in Stuttgart (Germany). Half Egyptian, half Croatian - perhaps that is why Nasser grew up as a very capable child. They say that mixing of blood is almost always successful. The boy studied very well, realizing that education is the only “ticket to a big life.” Excellent completion of the gymnasium allowed him to continue his studies at the University of Augsburg. Sonbati is called one of the most colorful figures in bodybuilding - and for good reason! Nasser is the owner of not only an excellent muscular form, but also scientific degrees in history, political science and sociology. In addition, the athlete speaks seven languages ​​fluently. The most valuable thing in Nasser’s life is health (his own and that of his loved ones). According to the bodybuilder, without such capital as health, you cannot accumulate anything else. That is why he never risked his health for the sake of a sports career.

Sonbati began playing sports as a child. Football, rowing, swimming, wrestling - the future bodybuilder grew up as a truly active child. But he didn’t like bodybuilding at all in his teenage years. Having already become a student, he got involved in training, a couple of times, out of pure interest, dropping into the nearest gym. Nasser turned out to be naturally gifted - his muscles began to grow by leaps and bounds! Such high performance could not help but turn the head of the young bodybuilder, and he decided to try his hand at competitions in Germany, but failed. The athlete did not despair and went to conquer Yugoslavia. This is where recognition came to him - Sonbati became an IFBB professional.

For several years, the bodybuilder was naturally unlucky - he did not even make it into the top 15. And only at the “Night of Champions” was Nasser able to make a splash and take second place, losing only to Mike Francos, with whom he later became good friends. From that day on, Sonbati was talked about in the press and on television, but most importantly, he got the opportunity to take part in the Mr. Olympia competition. Seventh place at Olympia inspired the athlete, forcing him to throw himself into training. Already in May of the following year, 121.5 kg of Nasser El Sonbati's muscles were presented at the Houston Pro competition. The amazed judges could not help but give him the victory.

The victory won at the “Night of Champions” (three weeks after Houston) made Sonbati one of the main favorites of the upcoming Olympia. But the “divine peak” remained unconquered - Nasser lost to Dorian Yates and Kevin Levrone. The competition left Sonbati with a very ambivalent impression: on the one hand, third place at Olympia is something to be proud of, but on the other hand, he felt that he could have become first. However, the athlete did not make a single comment towards the judges or opponents. Nasser earned a reputation as a true gentleman. Until the next Olympia, Sonbati fanatically worked on his back, which many called his weak point, but again took third place. Amazed spectators expressed their outrage right at the competition until Nasser calmed them down. He knew how to withstand the blows of fate, and they were not long in coming. After a series of triumphant performances (in the Czech Republic, Switzerland and Russia), the athlete was announced that his results at Olympia would be canceled because a blood test was positive for diuretics.

And only the next year Sonbati’s patience ran out. After losing at the Arnold Classic, he posted on the winner's (Flex Wheeler) website, speaking harshly about many of his opponents. Nasser listed several "Olympians", focusing on their "weak points" and indignant that they were still awarded the victory. The main idea of ​​the message was that no one talks about an athlete’s weaknesses while he himself remains silent about them. Well, from that moment on, Sonbati decided to follow the example of the others and consider that he had no weaknesses. Perhaps the performance had a kind of time-bomb effect. Despite the fact that at Olympia 97 Sonbati clearly looked worse than before, he took second place.

According to numerous foreign sources, on March 20, 2013, Nasser El Sonbati died of kidney failure.

Performance history

Competition - Place

Europe Supershow 2005-14

Power Show Pro 2004-14

Night of Champions 2004-15

Mr. Olympia 2002-15

Arnold Classic 2002-10

Mr. Olympia 2001-9

Mr. Olympia 2000-5

Grand Prix England 1999-6

World Championship Pro 1999-6

Mr. Olympia 1999-6

Arnold Classic 1999-1

Grand Prix Finland 1998-3

Grand Prix Germany 1998-3

Mr. Olympia 1998-3

Arnold Classic 1998-2

Grand Prix Russia 1997-3

Grand Prix Finland 1997-4

Grand Prix Czech Republic 1997-3

Grand Prix England 1997-3

Grand Prix Germany 1997-2

Grand Prix Spain 1997-2

Grand Prix Hungary 1997-2

Mr. Olympia 1997-2

San Francisco Pro 1997-2

Arnold Classic 1997-2

Grand Prix Russia 1996-1

Swiss Grand Prix 1996-1

Grand Prix Czech Republic 1996-1

Grand Prix England 1996-2

Grand Prix Germany 1996-2

Grand Prix Spain 1996-3

Mr. Olympia 1996-3

disqualified

Grand Prix Ukraine 1995-2

Grand Prix France 1995-3

Grand Prix Russia 1995-3

Grand Prix England 1995-4

Grand Prix Germany 1995-3

Grand Prix Spain 1995-3

Mr. Olympia 1995-3

Houston Pro 1995-1

Night of Champions 1995-1

Grand Prix France 1994-4

Grand Prix Germany 1994-4

Mr. Olympia 1994-7

Night of Champions 1994-2

Grand Prix Germany 1993-3

Grand Prix France 1993-3

Night of Champions 1992-16

Chicago Pro 1992-19

Night of Champions 1991 -

Grand Prix Holland 1990-8

Grand Prix Finland 1990-8

Grand Prix France 1990-7

Nasser El Sonbati in professional rankings

Born into the family of a poor Egyptian engineer.

However, Sonbati can only be considered half Egyptian, since thanks to his mother, Croatian blood also flows in his veins. Half Egyptian, half Croatian - perhaps that is why Nasser grew up as a very capable child. They say that mixing of blood is almost always successful. Quite soon, the international family moved to Germany, to the city of Stuttgart, where the future bodybuilding monster spent his youth. Nasser did very well in high school because he knew that a good education was his only chance to achieve something in life. The “golden” diploma of the gymnasium gave him the opportunity to continue his studies, and he spent seven years at the University of Augsburg, studying all the sciences mentioned above. Sonbati is called one of the most colorful figures in bodybuilding - and for good reason! Nasser is the owner of not only excellent muscular form, but also scientific degrees in history, political science and sociology. In addition, the athlete speaks seven languages ​​fluently. The most valuable thing in Nasser’s life is health (his own and that of his loved ones). According to the bodybuilder, without such capital as health, you cannot accumulate anything else. That is why he never risked his health for the sake of a sports career.

Sonbati has been involved in sports since childhood: football, rowing, swimming, wrestling. Bodybuilding did not appeal to him. Nasser recalls that at the age of 17 he first saw photographs of bodybuilders, and he really didn’t like them. But then, already as a student, he nevertheless looked into a nearby gym and got involved in training. Sonbati turned out to be a gifted athlete: his muscles grew by leaps and bounds! Inspired by success, he tries to compete at local competitions in Germany and fails. Then Nasser chooses a different path and goes to compete in Yugoslavia. And he manages to make it to the winners!

The thorny path to glory

Nasser is no longer the same as before, he cannot imagine his life without bodybuilding and is seeking to obtain a pro card, giving him the right to compete in professional tournaments. In 1990, Sonbati made his debut at the Finnish Grand Prix and took eighth place. Frankly speaking, not a very successful start, but failures only strengthen him. In 1991, he decided to perform at the prestigious “Night of Champions” in New York. Another misfire: the 110-kilogram Sonbati did not make it into the top 15. The judges simply did not notice him, never calling him out for comparison with other athletes. Nasser rightly suggested that, apparently, he was too thin and brought 133 kg to the next “Night of Champions”! Sonbati recalls this performance with a smile: “I was “a little” smooth, and the judges again left me outside the top 15. The next “Night of Champions” turned out much more successfully for me, since I stayed at home. But Nasser’s performance at the “Night of Champions” ’94 created a sensation, as he managed to take second place, losing only to the rising star Mike Francois, with whom he became close friends. The 112-kilogram Sonbati amazed the judges and spectators with his super-defined, hard muscles and very, very decent dimensions. They started talking about Nasser, his name appeared on the pages of “Kachkovsky” magazines, and most importantly, he received the right to take part in the Mr. Olympia competition. Seventh place at Olympia inspired Nasser and strengthened his growing ambitions. In preparation for these competitions, Nasser “slightly” lost muscle volume (a super-hard carbohydrate-free “pit”, when during the last week before the competition, while at the house of his friend Mike Francois Sonbaty, he consumed only 50 grams of carbohydrates per day, costing him a loss of 13 kg of “mass” ), and therefore immediately after Olympia he plunged headlong into training, wanting to show the whole world the new Sonbati next spring.

With Kevin Levrone and Dorian Yates on"Olympia" -95

The following May, just 8 months after the Olympia, Nasser put up 121.5 kg of pure muscle at the Houston Pro Invitational. Spectators and judges were shocked: no one could understand how he managed to do it. Of course, Sonbati won this tournament, simply overwhelming Vince Taylor, who was considered the favorite, with his volume. Vince and I are friends, and I respect him very much, but this was the very case when I wanted Vince to start respecting me, remembering the ups and downs of the fight at the Houston Sonbati tournament. Nasser explained the metamorphosis that happened to him by two circumstances: firstly, by the fact that he, together with his life partner named Bizera, moved to permanent residence in the USA (his choice fell on the Californian town of San Diego, which is very close to the legendary Santa Barbara ), where he had new opportunities in terms of training (in the States, unlike Germany, gyms are much better equipped, and they work almost around the clock, in addition, America is famous for its gigantic assortment of sports and dietary nutrition), and secondly, because he began to prepare for competitions differently. “I’ve been very big in the off-season before,” he admits. My usual mass weight ranges around 145-150 kg. However, before I could lose about forty kilograms in preparation for the tournament. In 1995, everything changed, and I lost no more than 20 kg, taking into account dehydration.

Three weeks after the competition in Houston, Sonbati easily wins the Night of Champions and becomes one of the main contenders for the Mr. Olympia title. Olympia-95 left Sonbati with conflicting feelings: on the one hand, he became third, losing only to the British monster Dorian Yates and the American Kevin Levrone, and it was he who received the most applause, but on the other hand, he felt that he could have been first. However, speaking on the pages of popular Kachkov publications, primarily Flex, he did not allow himself a single malicious remark towards his rivals or judges, thereby earning a reputation as a gentleman, noting only that even Yates can be beaten. Nasser is told that he has a weak back, compared to Yates, which is sorely lacking in detail, and for the next year he fanatically bombs his back. As a result, Nasser appeared at Olympia 96 in fantastic shape, with an improved back and weighing about 127 kg! Yates, with his 116 kg, is already quite lost against his background. However, Sonbati is again placed third after Yates and Ray. This news shocked the public so much that the audience, standing, expressed their indignation with a loud roar until Nasser calmed everyone down. No, he didn’t want conflicts and scandalous popularity, continuing to be a good guy in bodybuilding and facing the blows of fate with a smile. Sonbati received one of the most sensitive blows in October 1996, after his triumphant performance in the series of Grand Prix tournaments following the Olympia, where he won three victories: in the Czech Republic, Switzerland and Russia. Nasser was told that his Olympia performance had been annulled because his blood test tested positive for diuretics. Disqualification automatically deprived Sonbati of 30 thousand dollars, however, even here he resisted the vicissitudes of fate: I learned that the test would be carried out too late, and nothing could be corrected.

The end of gentlemanliness

However, when in the spring of next year at the Arnold Classic tournament, the second most important competition in professional bodybuilding, the victory and a check for 100 thousand dollars were given to the elegant, but very nondescript American Flex Wheeler compared to the 130-kilogram Sonbati, Nasser’s patience ran out. He made a sharp statement on the pages of the Flex website in which he branded everyone and everything: both the judges and his fellow competitors on stage: If you don’t talk about the fact that you have weaknesses, then the rest will also keep quiet about it. Take any of Olympia's top six. Wheeler? Take away his arms and deltoids and there will be nothing left. Ray? He's incredibly narrow and his upper legs are too long. Levron also has problems with width and has no calves. Yates? Everyone seemed to have forgotten that his arms look simply ridiculous against the backdrop of his hypertrophied back and delts. However, no one talks about this. So: now I will also say that I have no weaknesses! Oddly enough, the effect of the performance was amazing: despite the fact that at Olympia-97 Sonbati looked worse than before, he managed to take second place. It turns out that being a bad guy is more profitable?

The following spring, Sonbati again made an attempt to win the Classic and again Flex Wheeler, who was in fact in excellent shape, became an insurmountable obstacle on his way. This time, Sonbati does not complain about the bias of the judges and focuses all his attention on preparing for the Olympia. The sudden retirement of British lion Dorian Yates makes him perhaps the main favorite in the race for the most honorable title in professional bodybuilding. Flex magazine experts estimate Sonbati's chances as 1 in 3, only Wheeler is rated higher. However, fate had its own way: Ronnie Coleman won a sensational victory, and Nasser fell back to third place, letting Wheeler take second.

Is the star setting or is everything just beginning?

In the spring of 1999, Wheeler's conscience apparently bothered him, and he decided not to go to the Classic and Sonbati finally managed to win the coveted title. However, it was a Pyrrhic victory: speaking at Olympia in the fall, Nasser fell back to sixth place. At two subsequent competitions: the World Pro Cup in Rome and the English Grand Prix in Manchester, he also finished sixth, managing to lose even to the not-so-strong pro Milos Sarcev. Already at Olympia-98 it was noticeable that he began to change not for the better, and at the Classic this trend intensified. Ron Coleman, Flex Wheeler, Paul Dillett and Shawn Ray, who were present in Columbus as spectators, unanimously declared that the best on the podium was the incredibly improved Cormier, and not Sonbati. However, Nasser is not giving up, and rest assured that he will make his presence known again. I'm not going to hang up my swimming trunks, he says. I enjoy living the lifestyle of a professional bodybuilder, traveling, meeting people, learning a lot of new things. Plus, I still believe I can win the Olympia.

Not like everyone else

To tell the truth, today’s professional bodybuilding would lose a lot in the person of Sonbati. Nasser is a personality with a capital P, and that says it all. It’s not for nothing that not a single self-respecting Kachkov magazine can do without his photographs or articles about him, and Nasser has already appeared on the cover of Flex five times! The fact that Sonbati is one of the most prominent figures in the world of pros is recognized even by Austrian Oak Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has fired many critical arrows at modern pros. And the point here is not even Sonbati’s education and intelligence, his ability to communicate with people. Among other things, Sonbati is interesting because his judgments are sharp and frank and often diverge from generally accepted ones. For example, he refused to be the subject of a popular traditional column in Flex magazine, which provides biographical information about professional champions, as well as their answers to the questions: What is your favorite color, what is your favorite car, etc. I don't care what color my car is , says Sonbati, black, red or white. And I don't have a favorite movie. And in general there is nothing favorite. I don’t want to repeat after someone, like a parrot, that my favorite vacation spot is Hawaii. I've been to Hawaii ten times, it's just boring. And in general, people are interested in their own passions, and not mine or anyone else’s. But that’s not all: being one of the greatest athletes of our time, Sonbati openly admits his hatred of iron: When you are at the beginning of the journey and work with light weights, all this is a joy, but when you are forced to hang on weight in pursuit of mass barbell more and more weights, when you have three centners on your shoulders, you only think about how to quickly complete the workout and rush away from this damned gym! It sounds a little unusual, but it’s frank. And this is what Sonbati is all about.

Workout

Sonbati is a strong strongman who prefers to train with heavy weights. If I don't lift heavy weights, I lose stiffness pretty quickly, much faster than other, less massive athletes, he admits. Nasser usually trains 4-5 days a week, working 1-2 muscle groups in one session, usually one large and one small. However, it is impossible to present Sonbati’s clear training scheme here, since he, listening to his body, constantly rearranges his training schedule. For example, in one session he can work the chest and biceps, and the next time he will train the deltoids along with the chest muscles. Sonbati also changes complexes for individual muscle groups all the time. For example, he can start training the same chest with barbell presses on an incline bench, or maybe with dips. However, the exercises themselves almost always remain the same: When you rush between different movements, it is quite difficult to track progress in strength indicators. In my opinion, you need to work on the same complex for at least three weeks. As for training principles, Nasser is very fond of the pyramid, performing 5-6 approaches in almost every exercise, starting with light weights, which he lifts 12-15 times, and reaching heavy weights, with which he does two or three sets of six repetitions. From time to time, Sonbati does forced repetitions, and before competitions he includes supersets and trisets. Are you wondering what kind of weights this giant, respectfully dubbed Masser by fellow pros, dabbles with? Please: In his letter to me, dated November 1996, Sonbati wrote that he squats 310 kg for one rep and bench presses 235 kg for eight reps. As for other movements, in lying dumbbell lifts he works with fifty kopecks, in seated dumbbell presses he uses seventies, and in the deadlift he overcomes 350-360 kg several times.

About strengths and weaknesses

Sonbati's back is actually his Achilles heel. It is quite broad, but lacks detail, Nasser admits. Obviously, this is due to the fact that for most of my career I did only basic movements for the back with a barbell and dumbbells, consigning the work on blocks to oblivion. Now I'm trying to somehow catch up. If we talk about strong points, then there are many of them. First of all, these are the hips. Many experts agree that Sonbati’s quadriceps are perhaps the best in modern bodybuilding. Approximately the same can be said about the Nasser deltas, which are developed surprisingly evenly; no one bundle is ahead of the other in development, and, of course, about the abdominal press. Perhaps no one has cubes this thick! Of course, if an ordinary person were to measure the waist of this monster, he would probably faint; it would be no less than a meter, but against the backdrop of monstrously wide shoulders, it looks more than impressive, and it’s not for nothing that Nasser regularly beats such aesthetes as Ray and Levron. Sonbati's hands cannot be called outstanding, but their size is impressive. I remember how at the Russian Grand Prix-95 the fans, shocked by the size of Nasser, with difficulty returning their slack jaws to their original position, squeezed out: Ask how much his arm is? I asked. Somewhere around 58-60 cm, Sonbati rumbled. The boys felt even worse. They could understand; they had never seen anything like it before.

Performance history

Nasser El Sonbati in professional rankings