In a small health club tucked away in Changi, the sound of slamming arms echoes off the partitions. Athletes of all ages practice rigorously, perfecting approach and constructing power.
Arm-wrestling isn’t only a train in machismo or a celebration trick for this rising neighborhood—it’s a severe sport, and it’s gaining momentum right here because of pioneers like Gregory Yeo.
The 30-year-old Gregory is the person behind Eastside Arm Wrestling: Singapore’s first devoted arm-wrestling health club, the place lovers collect 4 occasions every week for membership observe classes. And he’s hoping the game will turn into a mainstay.
Gregory Yeo competed in arm-wrestling competitions throughout the globe
Rising up, Gregory arm-wrestled right here and there—like many different teenage boys.
“I used to be in a boys’ faculty, Maris Stella, and it was commonplace to arm-wrestle with mates in between lessons,” he recalled. “I used to be fairly sturdy, however by no means actually the strongest child, so after taking my justifiable share of losses, I made a decision to take to the Web to be taught strategies in regards to the sport to beat my mates.”
That marked the beginning of his obsession. In 2010, at simply 15 years previous, Gregory started learning arm-wrestling significantly—watching YouTube tutorials, studying boards, and analysing every part from grip angles to leverage mechanics.
However for a number of years, the game took a again seat as he centered on faculty and aggressive bowling, the place he represented his faculty in tournaments.
It wasn’t till 2016 that issues took an actual flip—Gregory travelled to Malaysia to compete in his first “correct” arm-wrestling event. Since then, he has competed in occasions throughout the globe, together with the Worldwide Federation of Armwrestling (IFA) World Armwrestling Championships in Paris, King of the Desk Worldwide in Dubai, and Over The Prime Down Below in Gold Coast, Australia, amongst many others.
Competing was one factor, however Gregory by no means actually had a correct place to coach. When he first joined the arm-wrestling scene 15 years in the past, there have been barely any gamers—most likely solely about 5 “severe” arm-wrestlers in Singapore, he estimated.
Coaching often occurred at a good friend’s home (who was additionally a competitor) or below the void deck close by. Then, beginning round 2018–2019, he educated outdoors a bar alongside Round Street.
To provide the game “a sure stage of legitimacy,” Gregory determined to take issues into his personal arms, and that’s when Eastside Arm Wrestling took place. The health club was launched in Sept 2025 with startup prices of round S$10,000 to S$20,000.
How a lot does Singapore’s first arm-wrestling health club value?
At Eastside Arm Wrestling, a S$30 day go grants full entry for someday, whereas month-to-month packages begin at S$99. Members come collectively for coaching classes on Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday evenings, in addition to Sunday afternoons, every lasting 4 hours.
Throughout these classes, pullers—a time period used within the arm-wrestling neighborhood for rivals—spar on competition-standard arm-wrestling tables, refining strategies, testing power, and, simply as importantly, having fun with the camaraderie. Senior members information newcomers by the fundamentals and fundamentals, serving to them construct correct kind and confidence.
As a result of arm-wrestling is a extremely technical sport, many of the coaching focuses on sport-specific workout routines, which embrace working with specialised instruments and gear. However the health club additionally incorporates common power and conditioning, guaranteeing members preserve general health and stop accidents from muscle imbalances.
Supporting this coaching is a group of skilled coaches, lots of whom have clinched medals at abroad competitions. They provide one-on-one teaching for members making ready for tournaments, serving to athletes take their expertise to the following stage.
Singapore has over 500 aggressive arm-wrestlers
At the moment, Gregory shared that as much as 15 members present up on peak coaching days—however he hopes to see that quantity develop, although he admits that the game remains to be in its early days.
I imagine arm-wrestling nonetheless has a protracted option to go when it comes to receiving mainstream recognition in Singapore. We’re very a lot nonetheless a really grassroots stage sport.
That stated, the local people has expanded steadily over time, with round 500 pullers now energetic throughout Singapore.
A lot of this progress occurred through the COVID-19 period, from late 2019 onwards, spurred by on-line personalities reminiscent of Larry Wheels and Devon Larratt who introduced world consideration to the game, shared Gregory. “Earlier than that, arm-wrestling in Singapore was very sluggish rising, gaining solely perhaps three to 4 arm-wrestlers per 12 months at greatest,” he defined.
Whereas the game as soon as primarily attracted these already concerned in strength-based disciplines, that’s now not the case. Today, many newcomers have little to no expertise in power sports activities, and the neighborhood can be various, with members starting from as younger as 12 to as previous as 60.
Nonetheless, hurdles stay. In line with Gregory, the greatest problem the game faces is funding. “Arm-wrestling itself isn’t costly to coach for,” he defined. “However competing requires a considerable quantity of sponsorship. The most important tournaments are often both in Europe or North America, which could be very costly to journey to from Singapore.”
To deal with this, Gregory has made athlete sponsorship a key purpose for Eastside Arm Wrestling. He’s funding a few of these efforts personally—in 2023, Gregory sponsored 5 junior arm-wrestlers to compete on the World Championships in Kuala Lumpur, and final 12 months, he introduced in a group of Filipino arm-wrestlers to compete towards native pullers.
Recognising arm-wrestling as a nationwide sport
Wanting forward, Gregory desires to take the game to the following stage. Eastside Arm Wrestling has been working intently with the Singapore Armwrestling Federation, an organisation that develops, governs, and promotes arm-wrestling in Singapore, with the long-term purpose of attaining Nationwide Sports activities Affiliation (NSA) standing.
Reaching NSA standing could be a serious milestone—it will formally recognise arm-wrestling as a nationwide sport in Singapore, opening doorways to authorities funding, sponsorship alternatives, and structured athlete improvement programmes. It might additionally elevate public visibility and pave the best way for it to be featured in additional mainstream sporting occasions.
“I really feel just like the founding of the health club is an efficient step in the best route in direction of this purpose,” stated Gregory. He believes that constructing a sturdy, constant area people is essential, coupled with sturdy performances in worldwide competitions.
On his half, Gregory continues to advertise arm-wrestling through social media and neighborhood outreach, hoping to draw extra folks to the scene. Throughout the subsequent couple of years, he additionally plans to develop Eastside Arm Wrestling to a bigger house outfitted with extra professional-grade gear.
“I’d like for extra of our athletes to be competing at large worldwide occasions such because the Asian Championship or World Championships, and hopefully we can have a number of extra medalists inside the subsequent a number of years.”
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Featured Picture Credit score: Eastside Arm Wrestling
