He won the 57 kg category with both arms. He left behind famous names. It was his debut as well – the 2023 Polish Cup. Check out the results. He's 31 and still has a lot left to accomplish. Meet this armwrestler!

PeSzy: I have a feeling you're an artist under this sports uniform. Is that correct?

Leonid Volkov: Yes! I studied Art at university but my father got me to love sports ever since I was very young. I started powerlifting at university until I got into armwrestling after about 3 years of lifting. I fell for armwrestling because you get to fight with a real person, not soulless iron with no emotions.

PeSzy: How did it go at first?

Leonid: I thought I could win against many people in armwrestling after training powerlifting for a few years but it turned out to be so wrong... For a long time, I was the weakest one in the room. I couldn't win any duel at my first tournament but I got better with time, eventually.

PeSzy: What happened next?

Leonid: I didn't have time to train armwrestling after university but I never forgot about it and wanted to pick it up again. Luckily, I stumbled upon “Spartan Warszawa” through Google. It was an armwrestling club in Warsaw led by Grzegorz Nowotarski. I texted Grzegorz, saying I wanted to join, and he invited me to train with them.

I got my old strength back!

I started training in the summer of 2023, and thanks to my amazing trainer Grzegorz Nowotarski and the guys training with him who are always ready to fight, I quickly regained my old strength. I participated in the Polish Cup in December 2023 in Rymanów where I could breathe the tournament air again, I could feel the thrill of fighting and spend time with amazing people. I loved that the event was so professional in every aspect.

I really liked the medals and diplomas that were designed specifically for this tournament. I would like to thank the organizers, MCs, referees, press, photographers and all the athletest for helping our sport develop.

PeSzy: Is 57 kg your natural weight?

Leonid: I weighed 62 kg before the event so I had to lose 5 kg to start in 57 kg. It was quite hard for me, especially in the last days. I limited carbs for 2 weeks and tried to eat mostly protein in the last 7 days. I felt very weak on the day of weighing but luckily, the fights took place only the following day so I could regenerate properly.

PeSzy: Thank you for the interview and see you at the next tournament!

Leonid: Thank you. All the best to armpower.net readers and Spartan members, especially Grzegorz!