Real Life Popeye: Meet the Arm-Wrestling Champion With Massive 19 Inch Forearms

Posted by Odinaka on Thu 06th Aug, 2015 - tori.ng

An armwrestler with 19 inch (49cm) forearms has earned himself the nickname Popeye from fans as he travels America competing to become the world champion.

An armwrestler, Jeff Dabe, with 19 inch (49cm) forearms has earned himself the nickname Popeye from fans as he travels America competing to become the world champion.

His monster forearms measure 19 inches (49cm) in circumference, with the strongman's hands big enough to fit a basketball in each hand.

Tests have been conducted to discover what makes Jeff's arms so large, as family photographs show he was born with over-sized limbs.

Having looked for signs of gigantism and elephantiasis, the University of Minnesota concluded that there were no signs of the disease or abnormalities.

He said: "I arm wrestled as a senior in high school. The fans way back then were the ones that named me Popeye."

Jeff and wife, Gina

He has gone on to become the State Champion himself, which would see him invited to compete on the World Armwrestling League (WAL) circuit.

"Thanks to the World Armwrestling League I am now competing with people from all over America. It's so fun to travel to places we wouldn't normally go. I was always good at arm wrestling, but the size of my hands did shock people at first - I had the strength to back it up. People freak out when they see my hands in real life."

Jeff's wife, Gina, said he was simply born that way. "I always encourage Jeff no matter what he does - and it's so fun. Everyone thinks Jeff is really funny and we do lots of goofy things together. This is just the next phase. I love the tournaments, and he gets me on aeroplanes to nice hotels and beautiful places. We are so proud of him."