Mohammed Hamada, a 20-year-old weightlifter from the Gaza Strip, is the first Palestinian athlete to represent Palestine globally during his participation in the 2022 IWF Weightlifting Junior World Championships held in Heraklion, Greece, during the first two weeks of May.

The sports field in Gaza faces many challenges, including the lack of large sports clubs that provide the necessary training for such individual Olympic sports, the lack of freedom of movement to and from Palestine, and the difficulty of obtaining visas for travel to some European countries.

Hamada, who returned from Greece on May 13, told Al-Monitor, “I started weightlifting when I was 12 years old, and my brother Hussam is the one who supported me to pursue this sport since he is the head and coach of the Palestine national weightlifting team of the Gaza Sports Club. I participated in many Arab and international tournaments, namely in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.”

He added, “Everyone suffers in the Gaza Strip, not just athletes. I faced many challenges, including the lack of many sports clubs and the lack of opportunities in the Gaza Strip. Athletes need a special diet, vitamins and nutritional supplements to help them build their bodies, and I am still a student; I do not work, and I rely on my father for all these costs. My father is a government employee, and his monthly salary is not enough to support nine people. Three of my brothers are also involved in bodybuilding and weightlifting and need nutritional supplements. Sometimes we would borrow money to buy supplements and vitamins.”