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When the news hit that Hadi Choopan got his visa and would compete at the 2026 Arnold Classic, it sent shockwaves throughout the sport of bodybuilding. The former Mr. O had been in hot water for the last couple of weeks due to turmoil in Iran and some of his contemporaries pressuring him to make political statements. Fellow Iranian bodybuilder King Kamali remains highly critical of Choopan, but it\u2019s one thing to be vocal in the United States and it\u2019s quite another to do so from Iran. I\u2019m not siding with Kamali or Choopan, I\u2019m just pointing out a glaring difference.<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, bodybuilding has never really been a sport that gets into politics. Iran and the United States have not been on the same page since the Western-backed Shah was toppled in 1979. The Islamic Republic is ruled by a theocratic authoritarian regime with many restrictions on speech and a pretty lousy human rights record. We know this. There\u2019s also no free press and protests are usually crushed. Anything that\u2019s even remotely Pro West gets scrutinized. Interestingly, bodybuilding is not seen as a problem and Iranian bodybuilders compete for their country. Some believe that Hadi should use his popularity to fight the regime. I believe Hadi simply wants to compete and do the business of bodybuilding. What that says about him as a person isn\u2019t really my call. To each their own.<\/p>\n
As a result of the backlash, some fans have taken to tearing down Hadi\u2019s posters at gyms and supplement shops throughout Iran. Others have taken to social trying to pressure the organizers of the Arnold Classic to stop The Persian Wolf from competing. I can assure you that while Arnold \u2013 the person \u2013 cares about politics, he wants Choopan in his lineup. He\u2019s probably more concerned with his bottom line that doing right by the Iranian people. At the end of the day, the ASC is an invitational. They want Hadi, Sam Sulek, and any other big name they can bring in. The more stars they have on their stage, the more they can sell tickets to the contest and the expos for.<\/p>\n
Plus, the fans want to see Choopan back on stage. Demand has always been through the roof for Hadi because he\u2019s a throwback to the 90\u2019s. It\u2019s like he\u2019s another Dorian Yates, only this ain\u2019t the 90\u2019s, it\u2019s the 2020\u2019s. Currently, you can\u2019t be a hermit and survive, but for some reason it works for The Persian Wolf. It didn\u2019t work for Big Ramy, but it works for Choopan. The fans want to see him and they want to see him win. A great many folks never accepted the fact that Derek Lunsford edged out The Persian Wolf and won the Sandow. They want to see a rematch. They want to see Hadi beat Samson, beat Martin, beat Nick, beat everyone.<\/p>\n