NEWS
“One, two, three, four… I declare a thumb-o-war!” is a phrase you can hear in playgrounds and parks and wherever children play around the world. But as well as being a popular children's games, Thumb Wrestling (also known as Thumb War) is an actual sport with official rules and even a
These championships are an annual event and are held at the mecca of Thumb Wrestling, Beccles in Somerset, UK. Attracting competitors from the UK, USA, Holland, South Africa, Poland, France, Thailand and a host of other countries, the Thumb Wrestling World Championships go from strength-to-strength each and every year.
Nobody knows the origin of Thumb Wrestling, but as it is such a simple game, it’s one that has been played for hundreds if not thousands of years. Several people through the years have claimed to have known who invented the sport, including the author Paul Davidson who said that his Grandfather invented the sport in the 1940s. This has been discounted however as Thumb Wrestling and other variants of the sport have been played much earlier than this.
The object of the sport of Thumb Wrestling is simple, to defeat your opponent by pinning your opponent’s thumb whilst saying “one, two, three, four, I win thumb-o-war!” within each 60 second round limit as stipulated by the rules of the World Thumb Wrestling Championship.
Although one of the simplest games known to man, Thumb Wars can be surprisingly tactical affairs, with top competitors using a variety of techniques and feints to overcome their opponent which can make games of Thumb Wrestling particularly intense and highly competitive affairs.
Anyone can play Thumb Wrestling as it doesn’t particularly rely on power, strength or explosive speed like sprinting, weightlifting or combat sports. However, because the size of the thumb can play a factor in a Thumb War, men tend to compete against men and women against women. Juniors too should only really play other juniors too if they want a fair match.
Having a larger thumb is much like having a longer reach at boxing and whilst it doesn’t offer a huge benefit to a player, it can present a significant advantage in some circumstances. There is no particular equipment required to compete in a Thumb Wrestling bout.
Because Thumb Wrestling is a simple win/lose game, there is no scoring as such. Each match is fought over one single round with one single point. However, outside of the World Thumb Wrestling Championships in more informal games amongst friends, games are often contested in a best of three or best of five format, the player winning two or three rounds respectively winning the match.
In the the World Thumb Wrestling Championships as mentioned earlier, matches are fought over one single round, so to win the match, one competitor has to pin their opponents thumb with theirs, long enough to utter the words “one, two, three, four, I win thumb-o-war!”
If their opponents thumb is still pinned at the end of this phrase then they are declared the winner. There can be no tied matches in Thumb Wrestling and matches will continue with further rounds until a winner is found.
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