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Ultimate Panja League: Pune arm-wrestlers outgun Punjabi strong-sters to win knockout
The competition comprises of six teams - Delhi Punjas, Mumbai Panjas, Haryanvi Panjas, UP Panjas, Punjabi Panjas and, the Pune Panjas
The Ultimate Panja League (UPL), officially launched on April 5 earlier this year, arrived in Pune at High Spirits on Tuesday.
The competition comprises of six teams - Delhi Punjas, Mumbai Panjas, Haryanvi Panjas, UP Panjas, Punjabi Panjas and, the Pune Panjas.
The first knock-out round, on Tuesday, saw Pune Panjas defeat Punjabi Panjas 4-3. In the previous round, held in Mumbai, Punjabi Panjas defeated Haryanvi Panjas, while Pune Panjas overcame home-side Mumbai Panjas and Delhi Panjas swept UP Panjas aside.
Founder of the Ultimate Panja League, Prashant Kumar, holds a Black Belt in taekwondo and has trained in judo, kick-boxing, and muay thai. Kumar was pleased with the response his event received in Pune. “The turnout was fantastic and the crowd was very receptive,” said Kumar. The next UPL round which is scheduled for November will be held in Mumbai where Mumbai Panjas take on Haryanvi Panjas, and will return to Pune in December to see the home team going wrist-to-wrist with the prolific Delhi Panjas.
Prashant Kumar believes the UPL is capable of attracting a large audience, cue kabaddi going viral.
“We could have used ‘arm-wrestling’, but we finalised ‘panja’ in an effort to avoid the western touch and attract the Indian audience, and judging by the response we have received at the first two events and on social media, I believe this sport has the potential to manifest into something big,” Kumar believes.
“As of now, we only have right-handed arm-wrestlers in the UPL. Since it is just a start, we have decided to stick with right-handed arm-wrestlers, but as we move forward, we will require a different table to compete on, because two left-armed-wrestlers cannot compete on a table which is designed for the right-handed,” Kumar adds.
Results:
60 kg - Devang Kanhaiya (Punjabi Panjas) 2 bt Zeeshan Pirani (Pune Panjas) 1
65 kg - Swatantra Dongre (Pune Panjas) 2 bt Sairaj (Punjabi Panjas) 0
70 kg - Swapnil Hajare (Pune Panjas) 2 bt Moin (Punjabi Panjas) 0
75 kg - Aniket (Punjabi Panjas) 2 bt Nimesh Petkar (Pune Panjas) 0
80 kg - Shailesh Bharte (Pune Panjas) 2 bt Stavan Sorate (Punjabi Panjas) 0
55 kg Female - Khalda Shaikh (Pune Panjas) 2 bt Komaldeep Kaur (Punjabi Panjas) 0
Open weight - Haspreet Singh (C) (Punjabi Panjas) 2 bt Nitin Gaikwad (C) (Pune Panjas) 0
Final score: Pune Panjas 4 - 3 Punjabi Panjas
Panja - the rules
- The elbow of the pulling arm must be on the pad at all times during a match. If the elbow goes off the pad, foul.
- The shoulder of the pulling arm should not go below the level of the table top. If it goes below that level, foul.
- Both legs should be grounded
- If a player commits three fouls, s/he forfeits the match.
- Referees decision is final decision.
Panja - the league
- Each team comprises of seven arm-wrestlers out of which six are male and one female. All belong to different weight categories.
- There are seven weight categories. The female category is 55kgs and the remaining six categories are 60kgs, 65kgs, 70kgs, 75kgs, 80kgs, and Open Weight category.
- Arm-wrestlers who weigh more than 90kgs are included under the Open Weight category.
- Each arm-wrestler has to win two out of three rounds to score a point for the team. Both players switch sides after every round.
After the game
“I used to be a mixed martial artist. A good thing about the Panja League is that if you want to represent a certain team, you do not have to be from that particular state or city. That increases competition, hence, improving the quality of the team.”
- Nitin Gaikwad, captain, Pune Panja
“I am a power-lifter and gym trainer. When the Amateur Mr. Olympia Championship came to India they had a booth with an arm-wrestling table. I defeated nine people and that was when I realised that I was good at arm-wrestling.”
- Haspreet Singh, captain, Punjabi Panja
