Naim Suleymanoglu

Although he no longer competes, Suleymanoglu remains active on behalf of Turkish weightlifting. In November of 2002, he met Iranian weightlifter Hossein Rezazadeh, current holder of the "Strongest Man in the World" title, and invited him to leave Iran, become a Turkish citizen, and compete for Turkey in the 2004 Olympics. As inducements, he offered Rezazadeh $10 million, as well as housing, expensive cars, and other gifts. According to a report in the Iranian Payvand.com, Rezazadeh refused, saying "I am an Iranian and love my country and people."