Arm wrestling

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Arm wrestling is an athletic contest in which two people place either their right or left elbows on a table, grip their hands, and try to force back the other person's hand to the table surface. The sport requires considerable strength, as well as great mental acuity, "explosiveness", technique, and stamina. Some techniques include the top roll, hook, post, and shoulder roll.

Various factors can play a part in one's success in arm wrestling. Technique and overall arm strength are the two greatest contributing factors to winning an armwrestling match. Other factors such as the length of an arm wrestler's arm, his/her muscle and arm mass/density, hand grip size, wrist endurance and flexibility, as well as countless other traits, can add to the advantages of one arm wrestler over another.

In competitive arm wrestling, as sanctioned by the American Armsport Association (AAA), arm wrestling is performed with both competitors standing up with their arms placed on a tournament arm wrestling table. Arm wrestling tournaments are also divided into weight classes as well as left and right handed divisions. Furthermore, strict rules such as fouls given to penalties (such as the competitor's elbow leaving a matted area where the elbow is to remain at all times or a false start), and trying to escape a possible arm pin by breaking the grip with the opponent may result in a loss at the table.

Some noted top arm wrestling competitors include John Brzenk (hailed as the greatest arm wrestler in recent times), Travis Bagent, Ron Bath, Michael Selearis, Alexey Voevoda and Marcio Barboza.

Arm wrestling was featured in the 1987 Sylvester Stallone movie Over the Top.

Currently, as of Fall 2006, a documentary is being filmed by Morrissian films about the current state of competitive arm wrestling entitled Pulling John.

[edit] Competitive Styles

John Brzenk is known mostly for his array of techniques which change almost every time he is engaged in competition, even with the same opponent within the same match. As of Fall 2006, John Brzenk is ranked #1 in North America, and arguably, considered the best arm wrestler in the world (though he will lose a number of matches throughout the season to top competitors). Ron Bath is known for his use of the Top Roll technique which emphasizes a 'roll' of the wrist as he brings the opponent's wrist down. Travis Bagent, like Brzenk, is known for his wide array of techniques, coupled with his massive strength and explosive style. Many of Bagent's matches have ended in seconds. However, Bagent is most well known for his colorful remarks and rather rude comments against his opponents. Bagent is considered the best left handed arm wrestler in the world, and is currently ranked second overall in North America, as of Fall of 2006.

Other competitors such as Matt Girdner, Michael Selearis, Marcio Barboza and Christian Binnie, are known for their reliance on strength, coupled with the hook technique, where the wrist turns into a hooked grip after the referee has started the match.

It is a famous sport world over, with a bunch of European and Russian Armwrestlers dominating the world scene at the moment. Alexey Voevoda, Travis Ivakin, Rustam Babayev and Farid Usmanov to name a few. It has also experienced a considerable boost in its popularity in the South Asian region, especially India and Pakistan. The famous names from these regions include Farid Khan, Ali Muhammad Khan, Ali Murtaza, and Khawaja Fahad; all of them innovating their own specific moves, especially the variants of 'The Hook" move. All this popularity throughout the world is just a means to an end of making it an olympic sport.

[edit] External links

Pulling John - Information about Arm Wrestling, Competitive Ranking, and Progress on the documentary in production by Morrissian Films.
ARM TV - Contains information about the Current State of Competitive Arm Wrestling and updates on the sport.
Armwrestling Supersite - Arm Wrestling and grip strength
GrowStronger Physical fitness message board with specific arm wrestling exercises and guides
Official site of Joyce King - One of the greatest female arm wrestlers of all time
Ultimate Arm Wrestling - Tips on technique, exercises, moves, and more
Armpower Magazine - Official Professional Armwrestling League site
Armsport Videos - Arm wrestling videos of Local, National, International and World Championships.de:Armwrestling