Meet Khali Quartey
Khalfani “Khali” Quarty was born and raised in Houston, Texas. Originally, he was brought up in Southwest Houston, but later moved to Missouri City, where he spent the remainder of his childhood and adolescent years. As the middle of three children, Khali was raised by immigrant parents; his father is from Ghana and his mother from Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland). After meeting at the University of Illinois, Khali’s parents came to Houston in the 1980s to start their family.
Being a product of African immigrants presented some unique challenges for Khali as a child. He was often met with very strict expectations as well as a disciplinary parenting style. Khali attributes this as a strength that allowed him to navigate his adolescent years where he came of age during the 1990s. Growing up, Khali was extremely competitive; especially when it came to sports. Throughout middle and high school, Khali played football, basketball, and track & field. He took a hiatus from school after high school, but later obtained his associate degree from Houston Community College and bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston.
Later in life, athleticism would serve Khali well. He was dared by a friend to participate in a local physique fitness competition. Although the friend later dropped out of the bet, Khali continued to train for the competition to push himself. While training for his first National Physique Committee (“NPC”) competition, he was amazed by how drastically his body was able to change in such a short time. When the day of the show came, he placed first.
This was the beginning of a new path for Khali. In fact, he fell in love with the process of bodybuilding. He continued to compete in amateur bodybuilding competitions and did very well. Then one day, Khali was encouraged by a coach to compete on the professional level at International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (“IFBB”). In his first professional qualifying show in Las Vegas, Khali placed one place shy of getting his pro-card. Khali almost gave up on the sport, but after a few tries he qualified as a professional at the Pittsburg North American Championships. Since becoming pro, Khali has competed in over 20 shows including Mr. Olympia (which made Arnold Schwarzenegger a global star) and won first place in the San Antonio Classic and the Houston Tournament of Champions.
Life as a professional bodybuilder has been great to Khali, and he has since ventured into other opportunities. Most recently, Khali was featured on the Oprah Winfrey Network’s “Ready to Love - Last Resort.” He was one of many Houston singles featured on the production; and was highly sought after. This opportunity exposed Khali to a new global audience; as well as earning him celebrity status in the bodybuilding community.
These days, Khali is a father of two children and enjoys spending quality time with them. Houston is near and dear to his heart because it is where he learned, laughed, overcame hardship, grew into his manhood, and became an elite athlete. He enjoys eating at local restaurants around Houston, sightseeing with his children, and lending his time to Houston’s worthy causes of mental health, suicide prevention, and homeless populations.
As for bodybuilding, what started as a mere hobby morphed into a way of life. Khali even credits bodybuilding for keeping him out of trouble and allowing him to make better decisions as a youth. The most rewarding part of Khali’s career is the impact he makes with training clients to get into better shape. Changing one’s perception of life, self-image, health, and wellness mean alot to him. Khali plans to do this, and so much more, in the future.
