Maciek Gralak from Dąbie is polish leader competitor from disabled class. He also easily manages in contests with other class’ competitors , which proves with many medals and titles of local, national  (manyfold Polish Champion and winner of Polish Cup) and international (vice European Champion) range.

Today  Maciek’s sport level only makes him raising up high in armwrestling every year. He treats everyday armwrestlig training  just like form of rehabilitation.

Maciek is such a colourful character, so that we decided to approach you that extraordinary, polish armwrestler.

Name and surname: Maciej Gralak Date of birth: 17.12.1988 Weight:60-63kg Height: 165cm Biceps: 38cm Forearm: 33cm Residence: Dąbie, Wielkopolskie (Poland) Club: Arm Fanatic Sport Grudziądz Education: higher Bachelor’s Degree on 28th of July Marital status: free Hobby: Quad riding

How do you train, with who, how does your everyday training look like, what weights do you use?

I train three hours a day five times a week. It’s a typical armwrestling training crossed with general progress elements. Timetable of  training I draw up on my own looking up to suggestions of Rustam Babayev and Igor Mazurenko. Very helpful are Igor’s films, it’s a great source of knowledge of armwrestling, it’s also a promotion of this sport. I’m training with my father and brother Kuba.
After hard week training I’m trying to visit swimming pool on weekend. Suggestion from my authorities, in a theme of armwrestling (Rustam and Igor) is not to overdo with weights, so that I match them suitably for exercise and that aren’t such  a big weights. I always try to do every repetition properly. That could bring success in fights.

How did you start to wrest? How does your family look at and appraise it?

My first contact with wrestling was totally by chance. I started armwrestling after testing my strengths in local competition. Organizers emphasized that it is excellent discipline for disabled. I had tried. It was a ‘love at first sight’. ‘Igor’s arrow had found me. I was captivated, that a person with problems in moving  like mine, can do sport with such a great successes. It isn’t easy for a disabled person to do any sport. Here, in armwrestling training occurs versatility of of movement, that’s why I recommend it for all disabled people. Strength training, which builds up frail body, endurance training, competence training (when it is needed to reduce weight) and technical training occur here. Doing armwrestling is a addition for a rehabilitation, even, in my case, replace it. My family, seeing my zest and willingness to exercises, totally accepts my choice. I owe my family a lot: mom, dad, brothers. They made a wonderful gym for me, they are a crutch, help and doping. Without them, I wouldn’t be where I am now. In fact, all inmates are positively addicted to armwrestling. Family knows terms of my contests, nomenclature and rules of fights, also their basic techniques. I don’t have to add that my victories are a huge happiness and emotional moments for them.

Do you, and if yes how, connect passion/sport with work? Or maybe you’re studying?

I have fixed training schedule and well organised time. There’s a space for studying in it. Training matched to everyday. It’s a duty and pleasure for me. This year I graduated University at management and only a Bachelor’s Degree is left. In autumn I’m starting complementary Masters. In a future, I’d like to take up sport professionally, in a sense of management and training others.

Have you got any interesting stories/anecdotes concerning armwrestling events?

Being a competitor with pretty big experience I have met next to the table man about 40kg heavier than me (from understandable consideration I won’t tell you who) wrestling amateurishly, who hasn’t lost any fight  for ten years. Unfortunately, he didn’t manage to win with me, what raised his eyebrows.

Do you look up to someone? Have you got any ace?

There are many aces that I admire for achieved results and who I look up to.
I admire them for their successes, hard training, using techniques, experience. They are: John Brzenk, Andrei Puszkar, Arsen Liliev. For me the role model of sportsman, master and very humble person, exuding with kindness is Rustam Babayev. I had a great pleasure to meet him in person and participate in training leaded by him. I have  benefitted a lot from it and in my training I included many elements suggested by him.

Do you have someone that you are afraid of in your weight class?

For every competitions, in which i take part, I’m trying to be prepared as well as I can. I put in trainings a lot of time and effort. On polish armwrestling scene there are many good and gifted competitors in my weight class and to every of them, when I’m standing next to a table , I approach with due respect and seriousness. As life shows, especially in sport, too big self confidence have been a cause of more than one collapse and that’s only sport. In this contest it turns differently, it’s a resultant of many events, but, on the other hand, force gives us often feeling of self confidence.

How do you mention your best competition and which of them where in your  opinion the best?

I think, that the best competition are the one at which we achieved good and the best sport results. In my case it was the first Polish Championships and European Championships in Bulgaria in 2009, where w get Vice Champion of Europe title. They are also exemplary competitions in case of background and organisation. It’s important to emphasize, that all of competitions in Polish Championships and Polish Cup range are prepared really well.

How do you sum up polish/European armwresting?

Armwrestling on the international arena has been evolving for decades. In Poland we have known it recently. Differences in training and sport’s level Poles are trying to get caught up quickly and are approaching do world’s leaders. The examples could be performances of polish competitors and theirs achievements in European Championships and Professional World Cup. Successes always mobilize to hard work. If behind them, among normal satisfaction are also concrete prizes, nobody will lack determination to hard work. To make polish armwrestling catch up leaders in this discipline, professional help of trainers is needed.