U.S. wrestler Bruce Baumgartner, of Cambridge Springs, Pa., holds down the Unified Team's David Gobedjichvili during 130kg freestyle wrestling in Barcelona Wednesday,August 5, 1992. Baumgartner defeated Gobedjichvili in the match. (AP Photo/Craig Fujii)
DOG COMMENTARY:
The Olympic Games seems to just bring out the best in dang near every athlete that competes…..and sometimes that best is not measured totally on how that athlete did in their particular discipline….but more what they had to do to get there…..as in the case of Bob Molle of CAN….for here was a man who participated in one of the most physical sports in the world…freestyle wrestling…..who had a herniated spinal disc operation just 4 weeks before the Los Angeles Olympic Games….and wrestled with a leg that still went numb on Molle throughout his wrestling competition….to include this gold medal match against reigning world champion USA Bruce Baumgartner.
Bob Molle is the only person in history who has won both an Olympic medal and a Canadian Football League Grey Cup Championship….for in 1984 he won the silver medal in wrestling at the Los Angeles Olympics….andd he is the former Captain and two-time national champion of the Canadian Football League. Pretty impressive if you ask me!
At age 23….Baumgartner had just graduated cumlaude from Indiana State University…..as he was one of the best scholar athletes in the world at the time…who was a massive 285 lbs that could bench press 390 lbs…..while being the reigning world champion in the 100+kg category.
This video starts out with an ABC Profile with Kathleen Sullivan on “How Amateur Athletes Supplement Their Training Income”….which is really interesting….cuz it gives a good example of how creative Americans are in creating finances for their development in their sports.