Abigail proves women can be pretty good in arm wrestling

Huge collection: Abigail with her brother Acho showing off their trophies and medals. — Bernama

KUCHING: There is no denying that arm wrestling is often associated with muscular men because it requires big biceps.

However, for national arm wrestling champion Abigail Kee Zing Ning, 20, the presence of women in the sport is not an obstacle for the feminine gender to highlight their graceful side and prove that beauty and strength can co-exist.

“When it comes to arm wrestling, many girls picture a hunky athlete with a ‘tomboy’ appearance, but that’s wrong ... you can still be pretty and be a champion without being a gender-bender or androgynous,” the Kuching native said.

“Naturally in the ring, and being combative, we will wear a fierce and scowling expression but we still want to dress up like other women.”

Having been involved in arm wrestling since 2012, Abigail’s name is well respected after winning 40 medals at national and international-level competitions.

The young athlete said her father, Dr Stephen Kee Chu Kiong, who was also an arm wrestler in the 90s, encouraged her to carry the torch in the sport and this led to her brother, Acho Prince Kee Zing Yang, 18, also catching the arm wresting bug in 2021.

Even sweeter, Abigail and Acho brought glory for the country when they each won bronze medals for the right arm above 70kg Under-21 and 86kg (Junior Under-18) categories at the 2024 International Federation of Armwrestling (IFA) Championships in Greece earlier this month.

“At that time (IFA), I really thought we both came to lose because the body size of foreign athletes was menacing, so I didn’t think we could beat the other bigger participants and get bronze ... this is one of our biggest achievements at the international level,” said Acho.

According to Abigail, who is studying at the Malaysian Institute of Art (MIA), the sport she has been involved in since the age of 12 has given her more self-confidence despite being chubby since childhood.

“Previously, I was really introverted, sitting at home and just drawing but, after participating in arm wrestling, I’ve made a lot of friends and become talkative because I’ve grown more confident.

“I used to always feel that I was fat and lacked confidence ... when I took up this sport, the gym training made me physically stronger and I also learned to accept my body shape,” said Abigail, whose most serious injury so far was a torn tendon in the right wrist in 2019. — Bernama