Indian natural bodybuilder Shodhan Rai has expressed his ambition to win his first gold medal at the Natural Olympia this year, following his recent success in securing two gold medals at the Iron Man World Natural Bodybuilding World Cup. Rai achieved these victories in the Junior Masters and Masters categories on November 6.
Speaking after his wins, Rai stated, “It is definitely a great thing to have won two medals at the international stage and that too at a World Cup. I had been getting the same results over the last two years, so trying to keep that up was a goal. The goal was to better myself in terms of conditioning. It helped me a lot in getting the gold.”
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He explained that his preparation involved focusing on the feedback provided by judges during last year’s competition, particularly improving weaker areas such as cardiovascular fitness, chest, and shoulders. “The mindset was always to try and get the best out of myself, from whatever feedback I got from judges last year. I worked on all that, and every time, there is a new set of athletes coming in, so I had to keep that extra 10-15 per cent buffer of preparation to be better than last time. Also, it was to improve in my weaker areas, such as adding an extra bit of cardio sessions, working on my chest and shoulders. Some of these areas were where I lost marks last time,” he added.
Rai had the opportunity to train at the renowned Gold’s Gym in Los Angeles, a facility frequently visited by Arnold Schwarzenegger. He also competed against Schwarzenegger’s son, Joseph Baena, describing him as “an amazing and humble guy.” Rai discussed with Baena the popularity of natural bodybuilding in India and noted that Baena is interested in visiting India to promote the discipline through shows and events.
“Prep is more complete when you get a workout or a couple of workouts in the Venice Gold’s Gym, which is also called the Mecca of Bodybuilding, even when we are in natural bodybuilding, the route which Joseph has taken. He is an amazing and humble guy, and I thanked him for choosing natural bodybuilding and promoting natural sport. I invited him to compete in India. I told him about the popularity of natural bodybuilding back home in India, and he even said he had seen a lot of videos and reels on that. Since I am part of INBA India (as a president), I am trying to get him here for some shows and events,” Rai said.
The Natural Olympia, regarded as the premier competition in natural bodybuilding, is scheduled for Friday. Rai, who has previously won two silver medals and six bronze medals at this event, aims to improve on those results by replicating the preparation that led to his recent World Cup success.
“The same thing I did for last weekend (World Cup). It is in within a gap of a week from the World Cup and I had applied for the Natural Olympia last year. I had to come in a lot more conditioned, shredded, with extra muscle mass. So that is the goal. Let us see how the results go this year. I have not won a gold here, and it is definitely a dream for one fine day. It is like an Olympic for us, the pinnacle. Looking forward to getting a better result than my last year’s silver,” he said.
With over 30 years of competitive experience, the 45-year-old emphasised his commitment to natural bodybuilding and rejection of performance-enhancing drugs. He highlighted his passion for the sport and his desire to promote natural bodybuilding among future Indian athletes, believing it can become a mainstream sport in India.
“I wanted to do it for the long term, not just for four or five years, stepping on the stage, winning an international contest. That was not the goal. I did not win in the initial years, because I was competing with non-tested federations and stuff. I would probably get fourth or fifth position in my category. After the natural bodybuilding federations gave me a fair playing field with testing of guys being done,” he explained.
“Staying being natural and competing naturally over all these years has been the key for sustaining for so long. I mean, your health would only keep getting better when you do it naturally. I mean, that is also the goal: to promote natural sport for the next generation in India, wherein more people get into this sport.”
He added, “You eat right, you balance your protein, you do weight training, you focus on your sleep, keep up your muscles. So it is not too much of a different thing what we do here. So, I mean, as long as there are more support in India happening from the corporates and stuff, I am sure there will be a lot more youngsters picking up this sport and then choosing this sport, and I do not see why it should not become like a mainstream sport, mainstream sport in India along with cricket.”
