Introducing: Saudi Arabia's female bodybuilders
Meet Saudi Arabia’s female bodybuilders
Location: Riyadh
Female trainers at this gym
say they've seen a spike
in weightlifting among Saudi women
(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAUDI BODYBUILDING TRAINEE, BALQEES SALEH, SAYING:
"Bodybuilding was a frowned upon sport for women in Riyadh and Gulf countries, but nowadays everyone is taking an interest in it and everyone wants to be a bodybuilder. Even girls who thought that weightlifting is masculine or only for men. Now everybody is lifting, and it's an amazing sport."
Women have flocked to sports
across the conservative Muslim kingdom
since a ban was lifted in 2017
on women attending gyms
(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAUDI BODYBUILDING TRAINEE, BALQEES SALEH, SAYING:
"I love sports and I started doing them some time ago, but did not train very much until I started going to the gym. My goal, just like anyone else's, is to maintain a healthy lifestyle and build a perfect body."
