Bodybuilding/Powerlifting – Boys

BEP caught up with Sahil Sharma, captain of the Bodybuilding and Powerlifting teams for BOSM 2009. He seemed very relaxed, confident and optimistic about his team’s prospects this BOSM. According to him, bodybuilding and powerlifting are two separate events though they comprise of a common team and a common captain. He said that bodybuilding mainly consists of displaying one’s physique in front of judges while powerlifting, as the name suggests, is essentially about lifting weights. When questioned about the team’s preparations for BOSM 2009, the skipper made it clear that it is not possible to prepare for bodybuilding in the one month period between the start of the session and BOSM. However, he reassured us by saying that all the team members had prepared well during the holidays. Moreover, he claimed that the team has a rich legacy of winning medals (5 golds and 4 silvers in BOSM 2008 ) and this time too , they are confident of being triumphant, with their hopes pinned on Neeraj, Rajat, Yash, and the skipper himself. He then told us that first yearites have displayed a lot of enthusiasm for this rather unconventional sport, and around twenty turned up for the tryouts, though only one was finally selected. Sahil also told us about the minor hiccups in their preparation, claiming that initially the team had only been allowed to use the Health Club facilities for a limited period of time since all other slots were full. However, that problem had been resolved in a few days’ time and the team had been allowed to train for longer periods. He further said that a healthy competitive spirit had successfully been infused into the team in the build-up to BOSM with team members betting (in jest) against each others’ ability to lift weights, and the incentive of treats and their habit of hanging out together, has ensured that an atmosphere characterized by unity, self-confidence and a competitive edge has been built up. In his opinion, SBMJC, Bangalore and MNIT, Jaipur were the two colleges they should be wary of, as they could give the BITS team a run for their money, and provide tough competition. He further added that this time around, the team would be missing the experience of a few awesome sportsmen like Sabu (who has been a consistent medal earner over the years but is now in PS). However, though the team is young and full of fresh faces, the members have prepared well and he is confident that they will perform even better in BOSM 2009 than in 2008 and scale new heights.

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