Lamar Cross surpassed all expectations in his competitive arm-wrestling debut in the Strong Arm Challenge Ten, part of the Florida Arm Wrestling Combat League.

Despite suffering from nerves, the 36-year-old stormed his way to two second-place finishes in the left and right-arm categories in the amateur 176lb division, narrowly missing out to Ukrainian Denys Havrikov, an established fitness influencer who boasts 3.5 million subscribers on YouTube and a Guinness World Record for the most parallel bar dips with a 100lb pack in under one minute.

While he may have fallen short of capping his debut with a triumph, Cross concedes the whole experience went far beyond what he had hoped.

“Just to be involved in the event was an honour and a privilege,” said Cross, who fell in love with the sport after stumbling upon arm-wrestling videos on YouTube.

“I’m really proud of myself because I performed well beyond my expectations.

“Going into the event and seeing guys that I watched on YouTube over the past few years was just so surreal. I’ll admit I was a little nervous with some butterflies in the stomach before competing, but once I got going it was great.

“The guy who ultimately won is well known in and around Florida. I think a few of the competitors were a bit intimidated when they saw him competing, but because I was new to it all I had nothing to be intimidated about.

“The whole experience was magical and more than lived up to what I thought it would be.”

As well as cherishing his own personal experience, Cross was also delighted to represent the island as he holds aspirations of helping to raise the profile of the sport in Bermuda and encourage his compatriots to compete.

“Not only was I proud of myself, but I was also proud to be representing the island and help push the sport for Bermuda,” said Cross, who is already targeting his next competition.

“I’m thrilled that the island has the chance to see what can be done if you put your mind to it. I taught myself and look where I am now, I’ve got to the point already where I’ve gained the respect of professionals in the sport.

“I’m already excited to go out again and compete, hopefully it will be some time soon.

“I had a really great experience and I feel like it will only be up and up for me in the sport from here.”