Iti Manchanda balances the challenges of her first year of high school with a passion her friends don’t share. The Laurel Heights student is a competitive arm wrestler, and a successful one to boot. The personable Manchanda, 14, has quickly made her mark in arm-wrestling, achieving impressive results since a second-place finish in her December 2023 debut.
Since then, she’s won Ontario, Canadian and Michigan championships, and stood atop the podium in October at the Asian International Cup in India. She’s naturally strong, to be sure, but Manchanda also possesses another skill set that can’t be underestimated. “Dedication is a big thing in arm wrestling, and there are days I push myself to work out after school even though I’m tired and don’t feel like it,” said Manchanda, who ideally pulls in the 154-pound weight class.
“There used to be people I couldn’t beat when I started, and I can beat them now ...
and that’s because of dedication.” The downside to the string of victories, often in explosive fashion, is a scarcity of female competitors in her age group to compete against. “I go to tournaments and see the same two or three girls,” she explained.
“It gets a little boring.” This has pushed Manchanda to compete against older and more experienced women, a challenge she embraces. One such opportunity happens Saturday, when she faces 23-year-old Brooke Grandmont of London in a highly anticipated best-of-five “Super Match.
” The right-handed ma.
