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Local Muslim Athlete to Compete at Canadian National Senior Weightlifting Championships
4-19-2016
Local brother, 24yr old Adam Rasheed Masse from Langley, grandson of Suleman Bhamji, is getting set to compete in the 2016 Senior Canadian Championships in the sport of Olympic Weightlifting. Adam captured the Bronze Medal in the 77KG div in his first ever Nationals at the 2015 Senior Canadian Championships held at the U. of Toronto-Mississauga last summer narrowly missing out on a spot with Team Canada for the Pan Am Games. He also achieved a Top 10 Overall Senior Men ranking from just over 120 Senior Male lifters in that competition, of which 30 were in his own 77KG div, as well as setting 2 new BC records for the Snatch (125KG) and the Combined Totals (280KG). Adam now lays claim to all three BC 77KG division records with the Clean & Jerk (155KG) being the other. He is the current 2 Time 77KG BC Champion and ranked in the Top 3 Overall Senior Males for BC. He is considered a contender for a podium position again in his weight class and perhaps the 2016 Canadian title.
Masse has only been competing in Olympic Weightlifting for 2 years now and training seriously in the sport for 4 years. Outside of a trip to Beijing China in the summer of 2014 to see how the best in the World in his weight class do it he has not had any professional or formal training and has been self taught in the sport over the past 4 years.
Prior to taking up the sport of Weightlifting seriously Adam excelled at the sport of Baseball with the Langley Giants, a youth select team that mostly played out of Washington State and Tournaments, the BC Premier League Whalley Chiefs (Fraser Valley) and Team BC at the Canada Summer Games. He was also the Senior Boys Athlete of the Yr in his High School graduation year and did a two year stint in Olympic Sprint Kayaking as a youth where he was part of a BC and Western Canadian Championship team through the Fort Langley Canoe Club.
It was after the 2nd year of College and a successful summer with the Medicine Hat Mavericks of the Western Major Baseball League that Masse made the decision that Baseball was no longer the sporting path he wished to follow and turned in his Bats & Baseballs for Barbells & Weights. A decision that has so far paid off for him. In two short years of competitive weightlifting Adam has collected 3 Gold and 3 Best Overall Male Awards (2014 Sea Fest, 2014, 2015 BC Provincials.), 1 Silver (2015 Ogopogo Open 85KG Div), 3 BC Records , a Top 5 Canadian 77KG Ranking and a Canadian Championship Bronze. The long range goal for Masse is to represent Canada at the International level and the 2020 Olympics Games.
The 2016 Canadian Championships will be held at the Richmond Oval May 21st & 22nd. The 77KG Div is scheduled for Saturday the 21st. 2:00PM. Adam will be representing BC and the local Flying Arrow Sports Club, Weightlifting Division. So if you want to come out and show your support then mark this date down. (Time subject to change: Please check either www.bcweightlifting.ca, www.weightliftingcanada.ca, or you can visit the Flying Arrow Facebook page www.facebook.com/Flying-Arrow-Sports-Club-111486815533845 as the date approaches)
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