George Hackenschmidt
Georg Karl Julius Hackenschmidt (1 August [O.S. 20 July] 1878 – 19 February 1968) was an Estonian strongman, professional wrestler, writer, and sports philosopher who is recognized as professional wrestling's first world heavyweight champion.
| George Hackenschmidt | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Hackenschmidt, circa. 1905 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Georg Karl Julius Hackenschmidt | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | August 1, 1878 Dorpat, Livonia, Russian Empire (now Tartu, Estonia) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | February 19, 1968 (aged 89) London, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Billed height | 175 cm (5 ft 9 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Billed weight | 100 kg (220 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Trained by | Ferdinand Gruhn Georg Lurich | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Debut | 1898 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 1911 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Hackenschmidt began his professional career in Reval, Estonia (then part of the Russian Empire) and lived most of his life in London, England, where he was nicknamed "The Russian Lion". He is believed to be the creator of the professional wrestling version of the bear hug as well as the person who popularised the hack squat; additionally, Hackenschmidt is also attributed as the creator of the bench press. He was known for his impressive strength, fitness, and flexibility. Later in life, he wrote many books on physical culture, training and philosophy.