Relatives Claim Men's And Women's Titles In World Thumb Wrestling Championships

Two relatives have scooped the men's and women's titles at the World Thumb Wrestling Championships.

Janet 'Nanny Thumb' Coleman laid her hands on the women's title while her son-in-law, Paul 'Under the Thumb' Browse, claimed the men's trophy for the fourth time.

Now I know what you're thinking - 'there's been four World Thumb Wrestling Championships?!'.

Yes dear reader, the competition has actually been running for 11 years.

The 2019 event was held on Saturday at the Locks Inn pub in Geldeston, Norfolk, and saw 24 adults and eight children go thumb to thumb... So you could argue there may be better thumb wrestlers out there somewhere on the other side of the planet.

That said, the championships has previously welcomed entrants from the likes of Holland, South Africa, Poland, France, Spain, Australia, USA and Thailand.

AP

Mr Browse, 38, said it felt 'amazing' to win once again, crediting his job as a deep sea diver for helping him nurture his winning grip (no, thumb wrestling isn't his full time gig, though he did take home £350 in prize money).

According to the BBC, he said: "It's very tongue-in-cheek. No-one has ever won three times and I've now done it four times.

"In diving you're always having to hold on to things and you get a good grip."

If you're from Britain, you probably remember thumb wrestling from school, but if you're from a proper country where you play proper sports, an explanation.

Basically the game involves two competitors locking fingers before conducting a short introductory chant to kick off the wrestle which goes as follows: "One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb war."

After this is complete, the name of the game is to pin down the opponent's thumb for long enough so that you can say, "One, two, three, four, I win thumb o war".

AP

In the playground, this was about all there was to it, however, at the prestigious World Thumb Wrestling Championships, it's all a little more proper.

Matches are officiated by a referee and take place in a little hand-sized wrestling ring. Competitors have three 60 second rounds to win the match and must keep their elbow on the table at all times. People are also asked to keep their thumb nails a short length, because quite frankly, sharpening yourself some kind of thumb talon is really poor etiquette.

So if you fancy your chances at the 2020 championships, here's what you need to have about you, according to organiser Rory Van Bellis.

Speaking to the BBC, he said: "In order to be a World Thumb Wrestling champion you need dedication, practice and heart."

So time to pull your thumb out and get training.

Topics: uk news, Weird

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey