Wrist Wrestling & Arm Wrestling
World Champion, Can-Am Champion,
Canadian Champion, Western Canadian Champion, Provincial
Champion
Brenda Vergette was born in Ponoka. She and her
twin sister were the youngest in a family of six.
Having four older brothers and sisters and a twin sister
probably accounted for Brenda’s competitive nature. As
a young girl she was involved in competitive swimming,
softball, gymnastics and baton. At the age of 10,
Brenda and her family moved to Athabasca. Unfortunately
Athabasca lacked in sports activities, but the farm kept
the family very busy and extremely fit. Brenda lived
there until her graduation from high school in 1977 when
she moved to Wetaskiwin. It was in Wetaskiwin
that Brenda was introduced to the sport of arm
wrestling.
Earned Eight
World Championship
Titles in Thirteen Years
After watching the World Arm Wrestling Championships in
Wetaskiwin in 1979, Brenda and her husband Jim became
involved in the sport. That year (1979) Brenda was
coerced into taking part in a meet in Red Deer so that
the Wetaskiwin Club could qualify for the Team Trophy.
Brenda placed second in her first meet and the rest is
history. Brenda’s rise to the top of her sport was
spectacular. Competing at the World’s three years later
(1982), Brenda became World Champion in the Sit-Down
Table.
During her thirteen year
career, Brenda won eight World Championships as well as
eleven Provincial titles, six Western Canadian titles,
twenty Canadian National titles, five Canadian Open
championships, one Can-Am title and one Golden Bear
Invitational Championship in Moscow. As well, she was
Runner-Up thirteen times. During her years of competing
Brenda took part in 129 competitions ranging from the
local to world level and competed in 182 weight
classes. She garnered 120 first place finishes; 40
seconds ; 10 thirds and 6 fourths for a total of 176
times in the top four, all in all a more than impressive
record. Brenda won championships with her right and
left arms, in her weight class as well as open classes
and in both the Stand-Up Table and Sit-Down Table. She
competed in meets all across Canada and the United
States and in Russia, bringing honour to her city,
province and country. Her triumphs involved hours of
work in the gym exercising and weight training as well
as practice arm wrestling with her husband.
Canada’s Top Female Arm Wrestler Five Times
Because
of her successes and achievements Brenda was named
Canada’s Top Female Arm Wrestler five times, in 1983,
1984, 1985, 1986 and 1988. In 1985 she was also named
Canada’s Top Arm Wrestler. In 1990 she won the award of
Canada’s Top Female Wrist-Wrestler and in 1991 she
garnered the Top Female Award in Moscow. All of these
accolades led to her being inducted into the Canadian
National Wrist Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1991.
Wetaskiwin honoured Brenda with a City and County Sports
Achievement Award nine times; each of those times she
was named Wetaskiwin’s Outstanding Female Athlete.
Brenda and her husband
Jim also became involved in the administrative aspect of
their sport. In 1981, a year after the formation of the
Wetaskiwin Club, Brenda and Jim became promoters for
Wetaskiwin. They helped to organize the North-Am
Wrestling Championships from 1982-1990, three of those
years were also Alberta Championships with added
responsibility. Organizing tournaments spread to
Millet, Hobbema, Winfield, Leduc and Camrose. From
1983-1986 Brenda was the Statistician for the Canadian
Arm Wrestling Association. She also helped with the
draw-sheets at a number of competitions, even involving
her sister and brother-in-law. Brenda and her sister
would do the draw sheets and announcing and their
husbands would referee. For her contributions to the
sport, Brenda received an Award of Appreciation from the
Canadian Association in 1984.
Brenda is undeniably
Wetaskiwin’s most decorated and gifted female athlete.
Her accomplishments at the local, provincial, national,
international and world stages are outstanding and make
her definitely worthy of being inducted into the
Wetaskiwin and County Sports Hall of Fame.
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