Roman Sedych is a world class armwrestling champion, disabled and regular category.

The first time I saw armwrestling was in 1994, in TV – says Roman. – I was still in high school back then. I watched the “Golden Bear” tournament, with the legendary Giennadyi Makhotin amongst the fighters – a disabled warrior with the strength of spirit to overcome any obstacle.

The “Golden Bear” left no doubts to Roman – armwrestling was his calling. He got back to Moscow, where he met Victor Zaitsev – armwrestling enthusiast and someone who’s worked with disabled fighters before.

I worked with Victor for a year – says Roman. – And then I realized that it was time to aim higher, to reach for championship. I started to look for ways to develop myself, and then fate had me meet a wonderful guy and great coach – Pavel Zhivore. He was my first real coach, who allowed me to excel.

Roman has a colorful past, but his future is no less exciting.

I’ve won my first championships in 2002 in Egypt – recalls Roman. – Then I’ve met Nikolai Obuchov. Even though we’ve parted ways, I still think he represents the old school of armwrestling. In 2004 I’ve won the World Cup in Africa, both disabled and regular categories. I became Master of Sports, world class. I had a professional break in 2005, but I still trained.

Roman has also graduated from a sports academy, with specialty in “adjusting to physical education and sports”. It was the adjustment aspect that connected him to his present coach, but more on that in the next article.

Artur Grigorian