Date: Fri 20-Sep-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: KIMH

Illustration: I

Quick Words:

Strong-Arm-Wrestling

Full Text:

Southbury Strongarm Going Over The Top

B Y T.W YATT

During the next month, Southbury's Scott Chmielewski will be stocking his

kitchen cabinets with things like fruit, pretzels, and rice cakes. Not because

he's overweight, or because of high cholesterol levels, or anything like that.

The 29-year-old is keeping one eye glued to the bathroom scale for a much more

unusual reason.

When the World Armsport Federation begins its 17th World Arm Wrestling

Championship Tournament on Saturday, October 19, Chmielewski needs to weigh

186 pounds and not an ounce more. That, you see, is the weight class in which

he became qualified by virtue of his second-place finish at the National

Championship Tournament in Albany, New York, earlier this summer.

A chance to arm wrestle at the World Championships is not one often gained by

someone with as little experience as Scott (only three-and-a-half years).

" A referee told me that people wrestle for ten to fifteen years before they

accomplish what I just did, " Chmielewski said. " And if I don't stay under

186 [pounds] I'll be disqualified right off the bat. "

In a field of over 30 wrestlers from 32 states, Chmielewski worked his way

down to the semifinals where he was defeated for an actual third-place finish

at Nationals. But the wrestler who ended up taking first was disqualified,

giving Scott the country's number-two ranking and qualifying him for the

Worlds. Growing up in Southbury, Scott wasn't big into athletics nor was he

ever an avid weight lifter. But one weekend over at Tom Sawyer's Restaurant in

Newtown, just over three years ago, he entered an arm wrestling tournament

just for kicks. He won.

" One of the guys who ran the tournament told me that I had an unusual style

of doing it, and that I should pursue it further, " he remembers. " I went

down to the next tournament at Bobby Valentine's in Milford, and I've been

doing it ever since. "

Out of 19 tournaments to date, Chmielewski has never not placed. He has

finished in either first or second place 16 times, and has finished third

three times. There are so many trophies littering his house, in fact, that he

has started giving them away.

Once Scott became serious about his arm wrestling, he contacted former world

champion, Al Vorelli of Meriden, who became his personal trainer.

" I used to think that the whole thing was just brute strength and ignorance,

but it's far from it, " he says. " There's so much to it. There are a lot of

different strategies that you have to be able to use and counter in an

instant. " The key to success is speed. Most of my wins come right off the

bat. You usually win or lose right at the start. It's tough to come back once

you fall behind. "

Chmielewski wrestles as many as 15 different matches at a given tournament and

has learned to ignore the pain. " I've hurt my elbow and torn ligaments in my

wrist, " he said. " You can't let the pain bother you. You just let it go.

Keep telling yourself that it doesn't hurt. "

That's what he'll be telling himself when he locks up against the best arm

wrestlers from 53 countries all over the world next month.

According to Scott, the sport is much bigger overseas. Last year's World

Championships were held in Brazil and next year's are slated for India. This

year, the week-long event will be held just an afternoon's drive down the east

coast in Virginia Beach.

Chmielewski has acquired local sponsorships to help him fray most of the cost

of his once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but admits that his budget will suffer

from the week he'll be out of work.

Anyone interested in aiding Scott, financially, may do so by reaching him at

his home address; 37 Housatonic Trail, Southbury, 06488.

The WAF's 17th World Championships will most likely be aired on ESPN 2 during

the week of October 19.