Christopher J. Taylor (June 13, 1950 â€" June 30, 1979) was an
American super-heavyweight wrestler. He competed in freestyle and
Greco-Roman events at the 1972 Olympics and won a bronze medal in the
freestyle. At 412 pounds (187 kg) he was the heaviest Olympian ever
until the appearance of judoka Ricardo Blas Jr. in 2008. (Weight
limits have since been imposed).The 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) Taylor,
wrestled for Dowagiac High School in Dowagiac, Michigan, Muskegon
Community College in Muskegon, Michigan, and Iowa State University
(winning the NCAA heavyweight championship in 1972 and 1973 by
defeating Greg Wojciechowski and Jim Hagen, respectively), and won the
bronze medal at the 1972 Olympics. He lost only to Alexander Medved,
in a controversial decision â€" the referee punished Taylor for "lack
of action". In the Greco-Roman competition Taylor was unexpectedly
suplexed and pinned by a much lighter Wilfried Dietrich, whom he
defeated a week before in the freestyle contest.Taylor wrestled
professionally in the American Wrestling Association. His debut was in
1973 vs Rene Goulet. Taylor faced various wrestlers, among them future
star Ric Flair. Taylor, trained by Verne Gagne and Billy Robinson, was
being groomed to be a major star. Chronic health problems limited the
amount of work he could do, and said problems forced him to retire
from the ring in 1977. He is often seen in video highlights shown at
the AWA training camp, most notably in the WWE DVD releases The
Spectacular Legacy Of the AWA and The Definitive Ric Flair Collection.
Also appears in a clip on The Nature Boy, an ESPN 30 for 30
documentary about Ric Flair's life.
American super-heavyweight wrestler. He competed in freestyle and
Greco-Roman events at the 1972 Olympics and won a bronze medal in the
freestyle. At 412 pounds (187 kg) he was the heaviest Olympian ever
until the appearance of judoka Ricardo Blas Jr. in 2008. (Weight
limits have since been imposed).The 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) Taylor,
wrestled for Dowagiac High School in Dowagiac, Michigan, Muskegon
Community College in Muskegon, Michigan, and Iowa State University
(winning the NCAA heavyweight championship in 1972 and 1973 by
defeating Greg Wojciechowski and Jim Hagen, respectively), and won the
bronze medal at the 1972 Olympics. He lost only to Alexander Medved,
in a controversial decision â€" the referee punished Taylor for "lack
of action". In the Greco-Roman competition Taylor was unexpectedly
suplexed and pinned by a much lighter Wilfried Dietrich, whom he
defeated a week before in the freestyle contest.Taylor wrestled
professionally in the American Wrestling Association. His debut was in
1973 vs Rene Goulet. Taylor faced various wrestlers, among them future
star Ric Flair. Taylor, trained by Verne Gagne and Billy Robinson, was
being groomed to be a major star. Chronic health problems limited the
amount of work he could do, and said problems forced him to retire
from the ring in 1977. He is often seen in video highlights shown at
the AWA training camp, most notably in the WWE DVD releases The
Spectacular Legacy Of the AWA and The Definitive Ric Flair Collection.
Also appears in a clip on The Nature Boy, an ESPN 30 for 30
documentary about Ric Flair's life.
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