"May be some people will fast, and that's good for them. But for me, I cant risk losing any of my matches," al Darae adds.
Although the exact number of Muslim participants in the games is not known, al-Darae is not alone.
Muslim athletes in London will be put to rigorous test as daylight is longer and close to 17 hours a day.
"It's a 17-hour fast in London. It's not like here in the Middle East. How much can a person eat in one meal? You can't have, say 3,000 or 4,000 calories in one meal. You need time to digest," says sports nutritionist Hala Barghout from the UAE, according to the CNN report.
However, Muslim leaders from the Middle East countries seem to insist that their religious followers stick to the practice regardless of how hard it affects their performance in the games.
"Playing sports is not a requirement in Islam. Players become athletes by choice. This optional activity, therefore, does not allow athletes to break their fast. They must be ambassadors of their faith. Meaning that Islam must be present in their actions, and they do not fall into anything that Islam forbids," Ahmed Abdul Aziz al Haddad, a mufti was quoted as saying by the report.
However, an alternative suggested to some Muslim athletes is that they can feed 1,800 poor people if they break the fast during Ramadan and as a recompense they could fast later.
Source: www.ibtimes.co.uk
London well prepared, says Johnson - The Guardian
The Mayor of London also suggested transport networks were "holding up", but he admitted it was too early to "count your chickens".
Mr Johnson dismissed the threat of strike action by UK Border Agency staff, claiming most workers would want to "get behind" the Games by turning up to work.
He told BBC1's Andrew Marr Show: "I don't think that whatever they do it will disrupt the Olympics or our preparations or disrupt our ability to get people through and in on time to their venues, get the athletes, the Olympics hierarchs, through to where they need to go.
"I do think if you look at the numbers who voted it is a very, very badly supported strike. I don't think people will want to let down the Olympics, I think the overwhelming majority of people working on the Borders Agency will want to get behind and come to work."
Mr Johnson said the Olympics were going to be a "gigantic schmoozathon" that would shine a spotlight on British business.
International Olympics Committee president Jacques Rogge believes London has met the standards set by other hosts, the mayor claimed.
Mr Johnson said: "If you look at what Jacques Rogge had to say last night, he's been in London for a few days, he thinks that our city is as well prepared as any city in the history of the Games."
He added: "So far the traffic system and the transport networks generally are holding up well, touch wood, you can never count your chickens or be complacent about this, but it's okay at the moment.
"I think possibly what we are going through at the moment as a nation, as a city, is that necessary pre-curtain up moment of psychological self-depression before the excitement begins on Friday. It is only natural that people should be tense, that they should be expectant and there are loads of things we need to get right."
Copyright (c) Press Association Ltd. 2012, All Rights Reserved.
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
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