Muscle Evolution met up with Classic Bodybuilding competitor JOE MANJOO, who was recently awarded his IFBB Professional League Pro Card. We wanted to find out what it feels like to join a select group of elite South African bodybuilders, which includes legends like Gary Strydom, Marius Dohne, Andrew Hudson, Hennie Kotze, Cobus van der Merwe and Earl Abrahams, who attained Pro status following the inception of the IFBB Pro League in 1965.
Joe, when did you receive your Pro Card?
I was awarded Pro status a week or so after the Olympia this year. My Overall victory at the Arnold Classic Africa qualified me to earn it. I just had to email the official results to the Pro League. They don’t require an application, they have an “if you win, you’re in” policy.
What is your opinion on the recent split between IFBB International and the IFBB Professional League which has disrupted the status quo in the world of bodybuilding?
If the ripple effect is that the sport grows and benefits and athletes get more opportunities, it is all good.
If an athlete holds a Pro Card from the newly established IFBB Elite Pro League, he or she won't be able to compete against the IFBB Pro athletes on the Mr. Olympia stage. What's your understanding of this scenario?
That is correct. The Elite League is a new and totally separate entity from the IFBB Pro League. They will be holding their own Pro shows around the world. The IFBB Pro League, to which I now belong, is part of the existing Pro circuit and the Olympia.
Tell us about your upbringing.
I grew up in a little town called Estcourt in the KZN Midlands. We were forced to move to Durban when I was 13 as my dad was terminally ill and needed access to medical care. Just a few months later he sadly passed away and my mom was left with the difficult task of raising two young boys as a single parent. At school I played soccer for the first team and for a few years after that I played club football as well. My brother Imraan and I would walk through town after school to train in the then Health and Racquet Gym. We were the only two kids in the weights area for years. He is also a bodybuilding champion and has won every contest he has entered so far.
When did you start training seriously?
This story is from the November - December 2017 edition of Muscle Evolution.
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This story is from the November - December 2017 edition of Muscle Evolution.
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