About the Founder and the Vision Behind GT All Sports

GT All Sports was born from a deep passion for arm wrestling and a desire to bring athletes together.

Our founder, Al Gross, began his journey in St. Petersburg, Florida, where he served as a law enforcement officer from 1974 until his retirement in 2000. Alongside his public service, he actively competed in the Police Olympics, earning numerous awards in his favorite sport — arm wrestling — at state, national, and international levels.

During this time, he met Ray Taglione, a referee at the Florida State Police Olympics, who encouraged him to branch out into open competitions and begin organizing events across Florida and Georgia. But like many arm wrestlers, he faced a common challenge: finding reliable training partners to get essential table time — the hands-on practice required to build speed, power, endurance, and technique.

To overcome this, he traveled regularly: to Temple Terrace, Orlando, Lakeland, Port Charlotte, and beyond — always seeking stronger training opportunities. But he realized something important: there needed to be a better way to connect athletes.

That realization sparked the idea of a centralized platform for finding training partners and events — no matter where you were located. Early attempts at using forums became overwhelming, with hundreds of scattered replies and no efficient way to filter by location. It was time for something better.

From Frustration to Innovation

In 2012, Al set out to build a website from scratch. With no web development background, he tried builders and consulted professionals. Early results were promising but failed to meet his vision. After having professionals make three different attempts with high annual costs and limited flexibility; Al, invested in building something custom.

Over time, he partnered with developers, acquired custom code, and gradually transitioned toward a fully tailored platform. The result is what you see today: GT All Sports — a community-driven site designed to meet the exact needs of athletes across the country.

What Makes GT All Sports Unique?

• 💪 Built by athletes, for athletes

• 📍 Zip code radius search for members and events

• 🧩 Custom-built tools for profile building, event posting, computer bracketing, and community messaging