Arm wrestling

Arm wrestling (also spelled armwrestling) is a sport with two opponents who face each other with their bent elbows placed on a table and hands firmly gripped, who then attempt to force the opponent's hand down to the table top ("pin" them). In the early years different names were interchangeably used to describe the same sport: "arm turning", "arm twisting", "arm wrestling", "twisting wrists", "wrist turning", "wrist wrestling". The sport is often casually used to demonstrate the stronger person between two or more people.

For the arcade game, see Arm Wrestling (video game).
Arm Wrestling
Two people with their arms in a starting position
Players2
Skills requiredstrength, endurance, technique, resistance

Description
Professional arm wrestling supermatch between Taras Ivakin (left) vs Devon Larratt (right)
An arm wrestling match in action

Competition

In competitive arm wrestling, a match is conducted with both competitors standing up with arms placed on a tournament arm wrestling table. Competitions are usually conducted in either tournament or supermatch form. A tournament usually involves successive rounds of a single match (or "pull") between any two opponents and a large number of total participants. A "supermatch" usually involves anywhere from 3 to 6 matches between two specific athletes, with short rest periods between consecutive matches. The supermatch format is usually reserved for more experienced and high-level pullers, and is analogous to a traditional bout in other combat sports.

Competition tables

Tables used for organized armwrestling competitions include elbow pads, which indicate the area within which a competitor's elbow must remain throughout the match, pin pads, which indicate the height an opponent's hand much reach before being considered pinned, and hand pegs, which must be gripped with the non-wrestling arm and are used for additional leverage. These tables vary slightly in their dimensions based on the governing body of the competition, but are always symmetrical with predefined distances between the elbow pads and pin pads.

Competition divisions

As with other combat sports in which body weight is recognized to play a significant role in victory, arm wrestling tournaments are usually divided along weight classes as well as left and right-handed divisions. Because most humans and therefore most pullers are right-handed, right-handed competitions are both more common and more prestigious than equivalent left-handed competitions.

There are also rules governing fouls and imposition of penalties, such as when a competitor's elbow leaves a mat where the elbow is meant to remain at all times, when a false start occurs, and attempting to escape arm pinning by breaking the grip ("slipping") with the opponent which may result in a loss.[1] Paraphrasing USAF rules, arm wrestlers must straighten their wrists with less than a one-minute time lapse during competition.[2]

Types
  • armwrestling
    • stand-up arm wrestling
    • sit-down arm wrestling
  • wristwrestling
    • stand-up wristwrestling
    • sit-down wristwrestling

Technique

There are many styles and moves in arm wrestling, each with their own relative balance of hand and arm pressures. The three most common general moves are the hook, toproll and press.

Pressures

Many force vectors, or "pressures", contribute to the overall success of an armwrestler. Generally speaking, these pressures can be classified into hand pressures and arm pressures.

Hand pressures

The major hand pressure is "cupping", or wrist flexion. The flexing of the wrist by the forearm muscles bends back the opponent's wrist, and dramatically decreases their accessible leverage during the match.

Secondary hand pressures include supination (as in a hook), pronation (as in a toproll) and "rising", or wrist abduction. Each of these can be used to get an opponent into an uncomfortable or disadvantageous position, from which the initiator can more easily pin.

Arm pressures

The three major arm pressures in armwrestling include side pressure, back pressure, and "posting" or upward pressure.

Side pressure involves contraction of the pectoral muscles and whole body movement in order to generate force against the opponent perpendicular to the plane of the palm. This pressure is most directly associated with movement of the hands toward the pin pad, and as such is often the main or only pressure instinctively utilized by novices trying to pin their opponent.

Back pressure involves contraction of the muscles of the back (primarily the lats) in order to adduct the upper arm and generate force toward the self and away from the opponent. If successful, the application of back pressure increases the elbow angle of the opponent and therefore limits their leverage.

"Posting", or upward pressure, involves contraction of the biceps in order to flex the elbow. If successful, the application of upward pressure decreases the elbow angle of the initiator, therefore increasing their leverage against their opponent.

Moves and Styles
Toproll (left) against press (right)
Hook match

Hook

The "hook" or "hooking" is any move classified within the "inside" style of arm wrestling. The defining characteristic of a hook is supination of the hand and forearm, which results in a match centered on pressure applied through the wrist. Generally, a successful hook is more dependent on raw arm strength (centered on the biceps) than hand control and technique compared to a toproll.

Toproll

The "top roll" or "top rolling" is any move classified within the "outside" style of arm wrestling. The defining characteristic of a toproll is pronation of the hand and forearm, which results in a match centered on pressure applied through the fingers. Generally, a successful toproll is highly dependent on technique and the strength of the hand and forearm, moreso than a hook.

Press

The "triceps press", "shoulder pressing", or "shoulder rolling" is often described as the third primary move or style of arm wrestling. The defining characteristic of a press is the rotation of the competitor's torso in order to position their shoulder behind their hand. This position allows the athlete to better utilize their triceps strength and body weight, and is usually only attempted in neutral or advantageous positions in order to finish an opponent. A press can be accessed from either a hook or toproll. [3]

Factors

Various factors can play a part in one's success in arm wrestling, technique and overall arm strength being the two greatest contributing factors. Other considerations such as the length of an arm wrestler's arm, muscle and arm mass/density, hand grip size, wrist endurance and flexibility, reaction time, and other traits can lend advantages of one arm wrestler over another.

History

Organized arm wrestling tournaments arose in the 1950s, while the World’s Wristwrestling Championship, Inc. (WWC) was the first armwrestling organization, organized the first World’s Wrist-wrestling Championship - held in Hermann Sons Hall, the second largest auditorium in Petaluma, California in 1962; later those (WWC's) World championships were known as Petaluma World’s Wrist-wrestling Championships.[4]

Governing organizations

The World Armwrestling Federation (WAF) has been the universally recognized global governing body for professional arm wrestling and comprises 80 member countries.[5] However, due to the labeling of referees and competitors that were associated with PAL/URPA with the status of "Not in good standing" thus being suspended from WAF,[6] many countries are jumping ship.

The International Federation of Armwrestling (IFA) is a democratic non-profit sport organization registered in Zurich, Switzerland[7] and is recognized by TAFISA, the Association for International Sport for All.[8]

Due to the decline in popularity and marketability of tournament-format competition, supermatches between high-level pullers are quickly becoming the more popular format. The two major supermatch-centric organizations currently in existence are the World Armwrestling League (WAL) and the Professional Armwrestling League (PAL), which are North America- and Europe- centric, respectively.

Common rules

The rules and regulations for arm wrestling are designed to create an even playing field and to prevent broken bones. Different leagues have their own variations, but most use the same table specifications.[1] Below are some of the general arm wrestling regulations:

  • The shoulder of both players must be in a square position before the match starts.
  • All starts will be a "Ready… Go!" The cadence will vary.
  • Competitors must start with at least one foot on the ground. After the "go" players may have both feet off the ground.
  • One's opposite (non-wrestling) hand must remain on the peg at all times.
  • A pin cannot be made if the elbow is out of the pocket.
  • To make a winning pin, a player must take any part of the opponent's wrist or hand (including fingers) below the plane of a touch pad.
  • A false start is a warning. Two warnings equals a foul.
  • Competitors will forfeit the match with a second foul.
  • If opponents lose grip with one another, a strap is applied and the match is restarted.
  • Intentional slip-outs are fouls, which occur when player's palm completely loses contact with the other player's palm.
  • Competitors may not touch their body to their hand at any time.
  • Shoulders may not cross the center of the table at any time.
  • Competitors will always conduct themselves in a sportsperson-like manner while at the tournament.
  • The most important arm wrestling rule: the referee's decision is final.

Training

Improvement at armwrestling is most driven by two factors: strength development/conditioning, and experience.

While there is no consensus among top athletes as to whether table training or weight training is most effective for developing armwrestling strength, it is generally accepted that both are important. Common lifts for armwrestling include bicep curls, wrist curls, and rows, all of which develop overall pulling strength and greater pressures against the opponent. In addition to standard dumbbells and barbells, serious pullers often make use of bands and cable systems with specialized handles in order to more closely replicate the angles and tensions of real armwrestling during weight training.

Table training often involves pulling many casual or semi-serious matches from various starting positions, and developing one's strategy and techniques against a large variety of opponents and styles.

One way to become involved in the sport is to find a local club and join their team. Often a club will have experienced competitors to teach safe and strategic play on the table. Local tournaments take place throughout the US, offering novice and/or amateur divisions for those setting out in the sport.

Associated injury
Typical fracture

Arm wrestling puts substantial torque/torsion stress on the upper arm's humerus bone, to a degree seen in few other physical activities.[9] Generally speaking, the bones and connective tissue involved in arm wrestling are not prepared to accommodate the stresses imposed by the sport, and severe injuries can occur without proper training and conditioning. An arm bone may fail in a diagonal break at or below the shoulder and elbow midpoint. This is significantly more likely when one of the pullers rotates their shoulder inward (as in a press) without first getting behind it, a position known as the 'break arm' position. Common injuries include humeral shaft fractures, shoulder trauma, muscle strain, golfers' elbow, and less commonly pectoralis major rupture.

The contestant on the right is in an injury-prone or "break arm" position. His shoulder must be in line with or behind the arm, as seen with the contestant on the left. This is cause for a referee to stop the match.

Injuries associated with armwrestling occur most commonly between novices or athletes of significant strength difference, when competitors are forced into unsafe positions out of inexperience or inability to maintain advantage. Matches or practices involving experienced pullers with the conditioning and knowledge to stay safe very rarely produce injuries.

Top pullers

The Official World Armwrestling Rankings can be found HERE. (xsportnews.com)[10]

The Official U.S. Armwrestling Rankings can be found HERE. (armfighter.com)[11]

The armwrestling historian Eric Roussin, founder of The Armwrestling Archives website, has detailed a chronology of the top pullers along the history for right hand[12] and left hand[13] pullers.

The work is based on the results of the major professional events, including sit-down/stand-up wrist wrestling and sit-down/stand-up armwrestling.

Men (right hand)

In 1966 another organization began to hold World Championships: the International Federation of Arm Wrestlers. Few competitors competed in both, so a parallel ranking was provided. On 1971 both rankings were unified.

Start Date #1 Puller Defeated / (Ahead Of) Event Top Spot
February 11, 1961 Duane “Tiny” Benedix California Wristwrestling Championship 364 days
February 10, 1962 Earl Hagerman Duane “Tiny” Benedix World Wristwrestling Championship364 days
February 09, 1963 Duane “Tiny” Benedix Earl Hagerman World Wristwrestling Championship 364 days
February 08, 1964 Joe Schuler [a] Larry Cory World Wristwrestling Championship 1 year, 5 days
February 12, 1965 Arnie Klein Joe Schuler World Wristwrestling Championship 1 years, 3 days
February, 1966 Mike Rowe [b] Arnie Klein World Wristwrestling Championship 1 year, 87 days
May 13, 1967 Larry Finley [a] [b] Randy Petrini World Wristwrestling Championship 278 days
February, 1968 Duane “Tiny” Benedix [b] (Larry Finley) World Wristwrestling Championship 2 years, 90 days
May, 1970 Jim Dolcini [a] [b] George Witteman World Wristwrestling Championship 364 days
August 06, 1966 Lloyd Lampton [c] Arnie Klein IFAW World Championship 2 years, 41 days
September, 1968 Maurice “Moe” Baker [a] [c] John Torch IFAW World Championship 2 years, 241 days
May 14, 1971 Jim Dolcini Maurice “Moe” Baker World Wristwrestling Championship 1 year, 7 days
May 20, 1972 Maurice “Moe” Baker Jim Dolcini World Wristwrestling Championship 364 days
May 19, 1973 Bill Harrison(Maurice “Moe” Baker)World Wristwrestling Championship 364 days
May 18, 1974 Jim Dolcini [a] George Ludwigsen WWC National Championship 2 years, 194 days
November 27, 1976 Virgil Arciero Jim Dolcini WPAA World Championships 1 years, 353 days
November 15, 1978 Cleve Dean Virgil Arciero Supermatch (Las Vegas, US) 1 years, 359 days
November 08, 1980 Virgil Arciero Cleve Dean Supermatch (Las Vegas, US) 336 days
October 10, 1981 Jeremiah Christian Virgil Arciero World Wristwrestling Championship 1 year
October 10, 1982 Virgil Arciero [a] Cleve Dean AWI Pro Super Heavyweight World Championship 111 days
January 29, 1983 Cleve Dean Virgil Arciero AWI Pro Super Heavyweight World Championship 3 years, 179 days
July 26, 1986 Scott Norton Cleve Dean Over the Top World Championship 1 year
July 26, 1987 John Brzenk [a] Ed Arnold / (Richard Lupkes) Over the Top World Championship 174 days
January 16, 1988 Richard Lupkes John Brzenk Sands International 266 days
October 08, 1988 John Brzenk Richard Lupkes World Wristwrestling Championship 189 days
April 15, 1989 Richard Lupkes John Brzenk Can-Am Invitational (Barrie, Ontario, Canada) 1 year, 12 days
April 27, 1990 John Brzenk Richard Lupkes Yukon Jack National Championship 253 days
January 05, 1991 Gary Goodridge John Brzenk Super Bras de Fer (Paris, France) 204 days
July 28, 1991 John Brzenk Gary Goodridge Yukon Jack National Championship 3 years, 30 days
August 26, 1994 Cleve Dean Gary Goodridge / (John Brzenk) Yukon Jack National Championship 16 days
September 11, 1994 Zaur Tskadadze Cleve Dean WAF World Championships 348 days
August 25, 1995 Gary Goodridge Cleve Dean / (Zaur Tskadadze) Yukon Jack World Championship 2 years, 21 days
September 14, 1997 John Brzenk [a] Ron Bath USAA National Pro-Am Championship 7 years, 6 days
September 18, 2004 Ron Bath John Brzenk Strong Arm Calling 49 days
November 06, 2004 Alexey Voevoda John Brzenk / (Ron Bath) Nemiroff World Cup 357 days
October 29, 2005 Andrey Pushkar [a] Andrey Antonov Nemiroff World Cup 35 days
December 03, 2005 Farid Usmanov (Andrey Pushkar) WAF World Armwrestling Championships 140 days
April 22, 2006 John Brzenk Farid Usmanov Ultimate Armwrestling III (Las Vegas, USA) 2 years, 145 days
September 13, 2008 Devon Larratt John Brzenk Arm Wars “Deep Water” 4 years, 262 days
June 01, 2013 Denis Cyplenkov [a] Andrey Pushkar A1 Russian Open World Armwrestling Grand Prix 1 year, 55 days
July 26, 2014 Andrey Pushkar Denis Cyplenkov A1 Russian Open World Armwrestling Grand Prix 4 years, 112 days
November 14, 2018 Levan Saginashvili [a] Tsvetkov, Georgi WAF World Championship 1 year, 196 days

Notes:

  • a Due to inactivity (12 months), injury or accident of previous dominant puller, the #1 spot is assumed by other one.
  • b Ranking based on Petaluma Results (1966-1971).
  • c Ranking based on IFAW Results (1966-1971).

Men (left hand)
Start Date #1 Puller Defeated / (Ahead Of) Event Top Spot
September, 1977 John Woolsey Dean Christensen NAWA National Championships 2 years, 7 days
September 22, 1979 Cleve Dean [a] World Wristwrestling Championship 7 years, 22 days
October 12, 1986 Gary Goodridge [a] (Canada) 1 year, 131 days
February 20, 1988 Garvin Lewis Gary Goodridge Ontario Provincial Championships 2 years, 243 days
October 20, 1990 Gary Goodridge Garvin Lewis Canadian Stand-Up National Championships 1 year, 237 days
June 13, 1992 Steve Morneau (Gary Goodridge), (Garvin Lewis) Gloucester Fair International Armwrestling Championship 364 days
June 12, 1993 Gary Goodridge Steve Morneau Gloucester Fair International Armwrestling Championship 364 days
June 11, 1994 Steve Morneau Gary Goodridge Gloucester Fair International Armwrestling Championship 364 days
June 10, 1995 Garvin Lewis (Steve Morneau), (Gary Goodridge) Gloucester Fair International Armwrestling Championship 1 year, 364 days
June 08, 1997 Eric Woelfel [a] Mairbek Gioev Golden Bear International Tournament (Russia) 180 days
December 05, 1997 Alan Karaev Eric Woelfel WAF World Championship (India) 337 days
November 07, 1998 Vakhtang Javakhadze Alan Karaev WAF World Championship (Egypt) 264 days
July 29, 1999 Erekle Gurchiani Vakhtang Javakhadze European Armwrestling Championships 1 year, 1 day
July 29, 2000 Alan Karaev [a] Vakhtang Javakhadze World Armsport Championship 65 days
October 02, 2000 Len Houghton Earl Wilson Canadian Nationals 336 days
September 03, 2001 Dan Victor [a] (Earl Wilson) Harley Pull 230 days
April 21, 2002 Alan Karaev [a] Cleve Dean World Armsport Federation World Championship 165 days
October 03, 2002 Christian Binnie [a] Eric Woelfel Harley Pull 65 days
December 07, 2002 Travis Bagent Christian Binnie All-Niagara Armwrestling Championship 35 days
January 11, 2003 Christian Binnie Travis Bagent Reno Reunion Armwrestling Championship 140 days
May 31, 2003 Travis Bagent Christian Binnie AAA Nationals 1 year, 300 days
March 26, 2005 Earl Wilson Sylvain Perron / (Devon Larrat) Mike Gould Classic 364 days
March 25, 2006 Travis Bagent Earl Wilson Mike Gould Classic 4 years, 264 days
December 13, 2010 Devon Larratt Travis Bagent Supermatch - Arm Wars “Sin City” (Las Vegas, US) 64 days
February 15, 2011 Travis Bagent Devon Larratt Supermatch - UAL Backyard Brawl 241 days
October 14, 2011 Andrey Pushkar Travis Bagent Nemiroff World Cup 258 days
June 28, 2012 Devon Larratt Andrey Pushkar Supermatch - PAL Armfight 42 (Las Vegas, US) 2 years, 119 days
October 25, 2014 Travis Bagent Devon Larratt World Armwrestling League Atlantic City Qualifier 3 years, 240 days
June 21, 2018 Oleg Zhokh [a] Andrey Pushkar Lviv Open Cup 146 days
November 14, 2018 Levan Saginashvili [a] Osmanli, Ferit WAF World Championship 1 year, 196 days

Statistics

The following table summarizes the accumulated time on the #1 spot. John Brzenk and Cleve Dean have been the most dominant pullers with the right hand. Travis Bagent and Cleve Dean have been ruling more time with the left hand. Very few pullers have succeeded to get the #1 spot with both hands for several years: Cleve Dean, Devon Larratt and Gary Goodridge.

(Minimum 4 years with any hand)

Puller Height Weight Right Hand Left Hand Total
Duane “Tiny” Benedix 6'4" / 1.92 m 260 lb / 118 kg 4 years, 88 days 4 years, 88 days
Jim Dolcini 6’0” / 1.83 m 200 lb / 91 kg 4 years, 20 days 4 years, 20 days
Cleve Dean 6’7” / 2.01 m 460 lb / 209 kg 5 years, 189 days 7 years, 22 days 12 years, 211 days
Gary Goodridge 6'3" / 1.91 m 240 lb / 109 kg 2 years, 225 days 4 years, 2 days 6 years, 227 days
Garvin Lewis 242 lb / 110 kg 4 years, 242 days 4 years, 242 days
John Brzenk 6'1" / 1.85 m 198 lb / 90 kg 13 years, 243 days 13 years, 243 days
Travis Bagent 6'3" / 1.91 m 265 lb / 120 kg 10 years, 350 days 10 years, 350 days
Andrey Pushkar 6'4" / 1.92 m 276 lb / 125 kg 4 years, 147 days 258 days 5 years, 40 days
Devon Larratt 6’5” / 1.96 m 278 lb / 126 kg 4 years, 262 days 2 years, 183 days 7 years, 80 days

Current State of Armwrestling

Of all divisions of armwrestling, right-handed superheavyweight (or "open" weight) armwrestling (110+ kg/230+ lbs) is the most widely viewed and most popular. As of January 2022, the current world #1 puller right-handed is Levan Saginashvili, the reigning PAL champion (as of December 2019), with the #2 being Vitaly Laletin, the PAL runner-up. At third is Devon Larratt, the current #1 puller in North America after recently defeating reigning WAL champion Michael Todd at King of the Table on May 28th, 2021 and defending his position against John Brzenk at King of the Table II on December 11th, 2021.

Levan Saginashvili and Devon Larratt will face each other in a supermatch at King of the Table IV in June 2022. This match is likely the most highly anticipated of any in the history of the sport, and will serve as a functional world title unification match between the WAL and PAL (as well as North American and Europe) for the undisputed world #1 armwrestler.

See also

References
  1. "Regulations – Armfighter.com". Retrieved 2020-02-26.
  2. "WAF/USAF Armwrestling Rules".
  3. "Basic armwrestling moves".
  4. "World's Wristwrestling Championship - Part 2: 1962-1969".
  5. WAF MEMBERS. World Armwrestling Federation
  6. XSportNews. "WAF Executive Board bans PAL / URPA Events • ARMWRESTLING • ARMWRESTLING NEWS XSPORTNEWS.COM". ARMWRESTLING NEWS XSPORTNEWS.COM. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
  7. "About IFA – International Federation of Armwrestling (IFA)".
  8. "Armsport Federation News". Archived from the original on 2019-11-04.
  9. Khashaba, A. (2000). "Broken arm wrestler". British Journal of Sports Medicine. 34 (6): 461–462. doi:10.1136/bjsm.34.6.461. PMC 1724269. PMID 11131237.
  10. "XSportNews.com". Archived from the original on 2016-07-03.
  11. "Armfighter.com". Archived from the original on 2020-10-29.
  12. "Chronology of the top armwrestlers of the planet (right arm)". Retrieved 2020-05-29.
  13. "Chronology of the top armwrestlers of the planet (left arm)". Retrieved 2020-05-29.
  14. "Guile's Theme Goes with Everything (world's most epic handshake)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-12.
  15. "Pulling John". IMDb. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
  16. "Game of Arms". IMDb. 25 February 2014. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
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