While sports in general require exceptional degrees of skill, speed, strength, and technique in order to succeed, there are few you can possibly think of that require simply an unmitigated degree of toughness just to be able to get by. Arm wrestling, one of the original “tough guy” sports, falls into that category, and the New York Arm Wrestling Association (NYAWA) is doing their darndest to earn this sport the mainstream recognition it truly deserves.
Jack Arias, a 30-year member of the NYAWA – both as a competitor and a volunteer – as well as the organization's current President, notes that it was originally founded by Gene Camp of Flushing, Queens back in 1977 – making it the oldest active arm wrestling club in the United States – in order to help promote the sport of arm wrestling in New York State. Since its inception, the NYAWA has run high-profile events and tournaments at numerous venues throughout the state, including the former World Trade Center, the Empire State Building, Nassau Coliseum, and the Jacob Javits Center, just to name a few.
During its heyday, the organization held up to six tournaments a year; however, once the COVID-19 pandemic hit, restrictions and lockdown measures put in place to help curb the spread of the virus obviously put further competition for the NYAWA on the back burner. However, they are currently in the midst of a comeback, holding their first competitions since the end of the pandemic and slowly building back up to their glory days.
“The pandemic came and it brought everything to a halt. Now we are trying to reorganize the NYAWA and make it happen again,” Arias said. “The sport of arm wrestling has become a worldwide phenomenon, and we are trying to do the best we can. We're reaching out and trying to find new sponsors so we can continue building back up. Last year we had our first tournaments since the pandemic, including one right here on Long Island at The Main Event in Farmingdale, and it was beautiful. We're looking forward to having more in 2023.”
The average NYAWA event can attract upwards of 70 to 100 competitors, hailing not only from all over the United States, but from the four corners of the globe as well, with participants traveling from countries such as Turkey, Germany, England, Russia, and more. The top three winners can expect both cash prizes and magnificent trophies to mark their impressive victories in the tournaments.
Arias noted that the NYAWA is currently setting up their next tournament in December, the American Dream World Championship in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In the meantime, he said that the organization is getting out there to help spread the word by holding exhibitions and meet-and-greets at UFC Gyms, as well as charitable events at hospitals, in order to help raise the NYAWA's profile in the post-pandemic landscape.
Arias' own pedigree in the sport spans several decades and includes many impressive feats; starting as a competitor at first, Gene Camp trained him to be a absolutely dominant champion in the 1980’s, and along the way he also became an arm wrestling referee before being promoted to head ref; eventually he would become NYAWA’s Vice President and, finally, its President two years ago.
Having been both a national and world champion at arm wrestling, Arias has been featured on various news stations such as CBS, NBC, ABC, CW, Paramount, HBO, and more. He also is known for being the mentor to Bobby Buttafuoco – brother of the infamous Joey Buttafuoco – who went on to win 14 championships in a row.
In fact, Arias was once even featured in Sylvester Stallone's classic 1987 film “Over the Top,” where the Hollywood star played a truck driver competing in an arm wrestling tournament.
“We were all competing in a contest, and the winner would go on to be in a scene in the movie with Stallone,” Arias said. “The match I was in lasted 17 minutes – it kept going and going and going – and Stallone was sitting to the side watching with Brigitte Nielsen, his wife at the time. I really wanted to win and be in the movie, and I had my opponent on the defensive but I couldn't pin him. Suddenly, Stallone got up and started saying, ‘come on Jack! Come on Jack, you can do it!’ That gave me extra energy, and I pinned the guy! And that qualified me to enter the movie Over the Top.”
For his effort, Arias – who was the number one-ranked arm wrestler in New York at the time – was featured in a scene where he essentially returned the favor that Stallone bestowed upon him, cheering the actor on as he was in the middle of a difficult match with a fearsome foe.
“I was right in front of Stallone, encouraging him to beat the other guy,” he said. “It was a really wonderful, exciting experience.”
In addition, Arias also helped to train Stallone for the movie, with the Hollywood action hero asking for help to address his weaker points and technique; Arias’ assistance and efforts resulted in an outstandingly authentic performance from Stallone as an arm wrestler in the film.
Arias noted that his interest in arm wrestling came at an early age; already displaying uncommon strength while a mere student in school, he was regularly matched up with adults as many of his classmates simply couldn't take him down. He later would go on to compete in Las Vegas where he found the competition much more difficult; as a result, he started taking his training very seriously, getting into weightlifting and making himself stronger and stronger until he became an elite athlete in the sport.
As he got into the arm wrestling professionally, Arias said that he had a hard time getting advice and tips from some of the established veterans; as a result, he steadfastly makes a point of always mentoring young up-and-coming arm talent to ensure that they have the tools they need to succeed in the sport.
“Back in the day it was very hard to get help from other people in arm wrestling, so I had to invent and make up tools to grow stronger on my own,” he said. “So now I try to give the competitors the best of myself and what I've learned over the years. It's very important for the veterans and the sport like me to pass down our knowledge to the younger generation.”
At the end of the day, Arias – who is carrying on the legacy of NYAWA founder Gene Camp – said that his dream is to not only return the organization to its former glory – with the help of its Vice President, Greg Grigorian, who is tapped to succeed Arias one day – but to continue to grow and evolve the organization into the ultimate ambassador of arm wrestling…not only in New York State, but around the globe as well.
“We're here in New York, and we need to give the best of ourselves to the world, as we did prior to the pandemic. So I'd like us to get us back into that position, but one of the problems is that in other countries this sport is very well sponsored,” he said. “In the United States the big corporations and businesses don’t like to sponsor us, which strikes me as very odd. They don't take it very seriously. Meanwhile, in Europe and Asia, people get thousands of dollars when they win tournaments. So my goal is to start raising awareness, and get more people investing in the sport of arm wrestling, and the NYAWA in particular. That's really my dream.”
Grigorian chimed in at this point, noting the inclusivity that the sport of arm wrestling offers and saying that anyone and everyone can get in on the action if they are so inclined.
"Arm wrestling is for the youth, it's for the elderly, it's for women, it's for men, it's for everyone,” he said. “You can arm wrestle to fix weak points in your arm, you can arm wrestle to build confidence, you can arm wrestle to add achievements-medals to your wall, and you can arm wrestle to be a part of a big family-community.”
And another goal that Arias says he has – which is possibly even more important – is to spread the word about arm wrestling to the youth of today for its many beneficial qualities.
“I've been addressing the youth in the schools to get involved with the sport, because it instills discipline mentally, emotionally, and physically,” he said. “Instead of the kids hanging out and doing nothing, or even worse using guns, they can instead compete in a sport where it's just one-on-one. Nobody's going to beat you up, and you're going to show what you're made of. This sport develops discipline and, more importantly, sportsmanship...both when you're competing, and in life.”
To find out more about the New York Arm Wrestling Association, please call 516-806-8525 or visit their website at https://newyorkarmwrestling.com.