Ramadan Poses Test to Muslim Players at World Cup

 

"Some players, however, said fasting might actually improve performance in the long run. The brothers Kolo and Yaya Touré, who are Muslim and whose Ivory Coast team was eliminated with a 2-1 loss to Greece on Tuesday, have frequently spoken about their faith, fasting and its benefits.

“The first five days are difficult,” Kolo Touré, a Liverpool defender, told the club’s website last year.

“After that, the body just starts to” adapt, he added, “and you feel really happy. You clean your body as well, and you feel even stronger after Ramadan.”

Yaya Touré, however, who also plays in the Premier League, for Manchester City, told The National, a newspaper in the United Arab Emirates: “Fasting? Have you seen the weather? I would die.”"

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Ramadan Poses Test to Muslim Players at World Cup - NYTimes.com