What did it look like from the organizational side? Well, a lot happened!

I recall for example (year 2002) hanging banners at competition site literally just before the first fight.

None of the organizers (a group of four people) had... a string. When we finally got the string it turned out that no one had... a knife to cut it into suitable pieces. So I went to the nearest “exotic catering” place. The mighty, swarthy owner, whose face raised even more associations with the locomotive than mine, lent me without hesitation a razor-sharp knife as big as a machete. I cut the string and ran to give the tool back. However instead of the owner there was a young girl behind the bar. When I approached her, she went pale and darted away. 

What has changed through all those years? As for me, I turned gray and I don’t cause fear any more, even with a knife in my hand.

But most importantly, I have no idea who is printing the Cup banners now and who is hanging them!

The number of people involved in the preparations reached 60 and it was a few months ago. The number of companies which provide us with the materials and all the “machinery”, from the lighting through the sound system to the super technical, innovative solutions that I can’t even name amounts to 10. The group of companies include such renowned firms as TRIAS whose work we could all watch in the Olympic studio broadcast by our TV.

This year during the site visit at the InterContinental Hotel I heard something which made me appreciate anew the organizational scale of this edition of the tournament. Apart from the typical “to-do” list there was also created a “list of the order of unloading” to prevent companies from blocking each other on the ramp and in the service lift. The unloading of the equipment will take nearly 4 hours with each sub-contractor performing assigned tasks.

Booths for TV commentators, stands for cameras, for the broadcast director, press photographers and journalists are a separate matter.

The audience watching the Cup live is not big, the room can accommodate several hundred people. But the organizers know exactly how big was the audience of the NEMIROFF WORLD CUP last year and what the reaction was to the direct broadcast.

Each and every detail is important! When in 2011 the organizers decided to show elbows on screens during the fight it wasn’t interpreted well. This year there will be a huge screen placed behind the competitors  (8,30 meters wide and over 3 meters high). On the screen there will be shown the competitors just before the fight and many other elements such as sponsors’ logos and information. 

The company TRIAS which invested a considerable amount of money as a sponsor of this year’s edition of NEMIROFF WORLD CUP is responsible for this part.

The head of the whole enterprise and creator of the brands “Zloty Tur” and “World Cup” – Igor Mazurenko admits that he finds it difficult to get used to the scale of the events that he designed himself. “You know, in the past I would do everything by myself. Even if I entrusted somebody with a task I would still supervise the whole thing. As a result already on the first day of the tournament I didn’t have the strength to watch what was happening on the stage. Now I feel comfortable, I know that the companies cooperating in the organization of the tournament are among European leading companies and they will do their utmost. Now I... have the time to assess the level of the events and admire the fights, spot interesting competitors and follow the whole tournament.”

To me, as to an ”involved observer” - because I took on such a role during the World Cup in 2011, of great importance was Igor’s behaviour when, during one of the fights, a fierce controversy broke out among the referees. How did Igor behave? He did nothing. NEMIROFF already has the best, professional team of referees led by David. They and only they resolve contentious issues.

What will this year’s TV broadcast look like?  You’ll see watching the BOEC channel on TV or on the Internet on the website www.armpower.net.

Promotion for competitors!

NEMIROFF WORLD CUP has become an institution promoting competitors and creating a suitable “setting” for their fights. The first was of course Alexey Vevoda, who from an unknown (although versatile) sportsman has turned into an idol. First Alexey dominated Armwrestling to subsequently reach for the Olympic medals in bobsleigh.

In the case of John Brzenk the situation was similar. Of course John was already a “Legend” but only to a small group of armwrestling funs in the United States. However it was only after he took part in the World Cup that he became incredibly popular throughout Europe and on other continents.

Travis Bagent made the most of the opportunity to take part in NEMIROFF. After his spectacular success he returned to the United States and signed advantageous promotional contracts.

Taras Ivakin in 2005, after taking part in tournament became “the face of FITMAX” and from that moment his career began to gain speed.

Dmitriy Trubin right after his participation in NEMIROFF 2011 joined the ARMFIGHT and is becoming increasingly popular.

Andrey Pushkar has cooperated with FITMAX TEAM for years and has consistently built his career on successes in the World Cup and PAL fights.

The thing is that NEMIROFF is not only about earning money by competitors. Mazurenko’s idea is to promote those armwrestlers who can show their talent, who have the potential to take part in professional duels, Vendettas, ARMFIGHTS from the Urals to Los Angeles.

Prestige!

Igor Mazurenko says: - ”Since we invite the best in the world, we have to create for them and the audience prestigious conditions. Therefore we analyze which place turned out to be the best through the past 12 years. We used casinos with their magical ambience, we used hotels. In 2010 the tournament took place in a elegant hotel in Sopot. Generally speaking, everyone was satisfied with the conditions and setting. However, access to Tricity for visitors from abroad is more difficult than to Warsaw. Similarly, for Polish funs who want to watch the fights live. In 2011 we chose Ozarow Mazowiecki nearby Warsaw. This place had many advantages, especially large areas, yet... Let’s not go into details. This year we opted for the city centre and a very prestigious, five-star InterContinental hotel. The hotel has hosted numerous events, conventions, congresses. Its infrastructure is excellent. I hope that the competitors – if they find time – will take the lift to the top floor and see the panorama of Warsaw.”

This article is intended for the most fervent armwrestling fans. I just wanted to show you what it all looks like from the inside. If you are going to watch the tournament live, for sure we’ll be able to exchange a few words. If, however, you decide to watch a broadcast, think for a moment about these “ants” in the backstage who work to achieve such a standard of the whole event.

PeSzy