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Sports prevails over everything, including politics. If you encourage your children to play sports, whatever the sport may be, see to it that they have dedication, discipline, determination, sincerity and honesty,” so stated guest of honor Merzban Patel, hockey coach and recent recipient of the Dronacharya Award, at the fourth All Zoroastrian Men and Women Arm Wrestling Competition held on November 16, 2019 on the grounds of the Parsee Gymkhana (PG) at Marine Drive.

 

 

 

 

"Encourage your children, especially those between five and eight years to take up any sport, not because they want to make it their career, but to become healthy citizens and to lead a good life,” advised "Bawa” (as he is affectionately called by his students) Patel who expressed pleasure at being invited. This was the first time his role in the sport of hockey has been appreciated by his own community, he stated, PG being the first to laud his selfless and immense contribution to the game.
The managing committee (MC) wanted to invite Patel as guest of honor last year, but being the "evasive person” that he is, "we couldn’t get in touch with him. Since he received the Dronacharya Award this year, he was our natural choice,” mentioned MC member Rustom Jasoomoney who lamented that the "world class coach has no Parsi students!”
Surat’s Vispi Kharadi, seven times Guinness World Record holder in various martial arts feats who was invited as chief guest, advised parents: "Don’t tell your kids what to do. Let them just play around, enjoy whatever they do. Don’t force them. Just teach them discipline and hard work and they’ll be on the right track.” Kharadi was present that day for two reasons: "Because arm wrestling is my favorite sport which I’ve practiced and played for years and secondly to watch my mentor senior karateka Percy Bahmani (arm) wrestle.”
Prepped with a specially custom-made podium table equipped with upholstered elbow pads and pins, courtesy Viraf Chiniwala of Veldon Coats, the event commenced with the weighing in of the participants and allotting categories for men and women respectively. This year the number of participants dropped to half, 34 (27 males and seven females) as versus the 69 registered last year. That was a record since the Competition’s inception four years ago. The youngest male to participate was 14 years, and female, nine. The eldest participants were aged 73 (male) and 53 (female). The heaviest male and female weighed in at 136.3 and 132 kg respectively, while the lightest male was 51.4 kg and female, 45 kg. As is the norm, the eldest participant, 73-year-old Aspi Billimoria inaugurated the event by cutting the red ribbon wound around the table.
For want of more female participation, the girls/women were clubbed into two categories — under 18 and open — the latter irrespective of weight. Hence the evening saw a mother-daughter duo wrestle it out. For the men’s final Champion of Champions bout, a 19-year-old, weighing 70 kg, was paired against a 33-year-old’s 97 kg.

 

 

 

 

 

Encouraging shouts of "Come on Karizma,” "Mummy khécho (pull)!” "Cyrus chhorto na (Don’t give up, Cyrus)!” rent the air as the 300+ crowd cheered their favored participant. The atmosphere was charged on the wintry evening with parents, family and friends animatedly yelling and cheering the arm wrestlers to fight it out. A short documentary film made on Kharadi’s various world records was screened for one and all, with commentary by the martial art expert’s wife Farzana. 
The sport is a display of a combination of skill, grip, body leverage, mental strength with arm and shoulder power. Rules of the game were emphasized at the start by the referees and judges who are affiliated to the Maharashtra Arm Wresting Association (MAWA). They had come specially from outside Bombay for the event. The competition is judged in accordance with international rules. A wrong grip or twist of the wrist can result in injury for the participant. To counter any unfortunate accident, the Parsi Ambulance Division personnel were on standby.
How does the MC categorize participants, we queried? "Since we have limited entries in each category we usually go by age. Ideally it should be by age and weight,” explained Jasoomoney in an email to Parsiana. Various factors go into making the evening a success: ascertaining the availability of the PG grounds on a suitable weekend; raising funds through sponsors; obtaining permission from MAWA; getting confirmation on the availability of their officials and arranging for their transport and stay in Bombay; stage and audiovisual arrangements, and most importantly catering, the email mentions. "We start contacting the previous year’s participants two months before the event and release advertisements a month earlier,” he noted.
The PG team of Jasoomoney, Minoo Khan, Hamavand Shroff, Behram Irani and Hoshang Katrak were specially named for the success of the event. The evening was compered by Hutoxi Doodhwalla. "With the complete support of (PG president) Mehli Golvala and staff of the PG along with the MC members makes the task (of organizing the event) easy and rewarding,” acknowledged Jasoo-money. Participants had to pay an entry fee of Rs 350 which included dinner and a tee shirt. Overnight hotel stay was promised to outstation participants on a room sharing basis, mentioned their advertisement published in the community Press. The "mag-nanimous” spon-sorship support of donors Ervad and Mrs H. P. Antia Trust, WZO (World Zoroastrian Organisation) Trust Funds, Zoroastrian Co-operative Bank Limited, Veldon Coats, Dunnes Institute, Raymond Textiles, Peekay Wines, Khodadad Irani of Wibs, Khan and decorator Vivek Chaphekar was gratefully acknowledged.
With weary arms and spirits high, participants, invitees and the audience enjoyed the sumptuous buffet spread laid out by Good Food Concept on the verdant lawns of the Gymkhana.