Wrestlers

Here's your allotment of beef for the day.

 

Octave Paquit

Although the image quality isn't the best, I really like this photo

of Octave Paquit, amateur wrestling champion of France.

 

Wrestling Way Back When, Part 1 - Assorted

It's wrestling day and a two parter, with assorted photos in part one and Georg Hackenschimdt in part two.  We start with two guys going at each other more convincingly than some we will see.

 

Gouging?

I didn't think eye gouging was allowed in wrestling.

 

Muybridge

This is from one of Muybridge's motion studies.

 

Is that a hold?

I think this shot was arranged more for art than to display an actual wrestling hold.

 

C'mon!

The guy at left seems to be saying,  "C'mon, you know you can't take me."

 

Wrestling Way Back When, Part 2 - Georg Hackenschimdt

Part two of today's series features Georg Hackenschmidt, an Estonian strong man and wrestler 

who contended for the world wresting championship in the first decade and a half of the 

20th Century.  Many modern commentators have remarked on his well

 developed glutes, and I've chosen photos that show them off.

 

With Gruhn

This is the first of two photos in part two that feature pages from an instructional booklet for aspiring wrestlers by George Hackenschimdt and Ferdinand Gruhn.  Lots of muscles there!

 

Dark trunks

Although the dark trunks don't help, we still get an impression of those amazing glutes.

 

With Gruhn II

Here's another page from the Hackenschimdt-Gruhn instructional booklet.

 

Rear view repeat

Closing the Hackenschmidt portion of the series with a repeat of a rear view

 I posted over seven years ago.  My, how time flies.

 

Wrestlers

This is my favorite of the day.

 

Pyotr Krylov

The garters, the loincloth, and the come hither look all combine nicely 

in this photo of 1900-ish wrester and strong man Pyotr Krylov.

 

Mismatch

And finally, I always thought they had strict weight categories for high school 

and college wrestling, but apparently they didn't follow those rules in this case.

 

Vancouver, 1913

Here we see the Vancouver, British Columbia YMCA wrestling club in 1913.

I shudder to think how many of these beautiful men were lost in the Great War.

 

Wladek "Tarzan" Kowalski

Windsor, Ontario was home for Wladek Kowalski, a professional wrestler who started his career 

as Tarzan Kowalski, but switched after a few years to the alliterative Killer Kowalski.

Apparently he hopped across the Detroit River to be photographed by Doug Juleff.

 

Gordon MacKenzie

Scotsman Gordon MacKenzie got around.  He picked up a medical degree in Chicago

before going on the pro wrestling circuit where he toured as far as Australia and 

New Zealand.  It was in the latter location where this 1937 photo was taken.

 

Hairy Wrestler

This guy is from Albert's collection of hairy wrestlers.

Google says he is Larry "The Axe" Hennig.

 

Ledermeister Wrestling Set

Ledermeister, aka Paul Gerrior, produced a memorable set of still photos wrestling with a partner whose name I have not been able to find out.  (I will lavishly praise anyone who know who he is.)  I've posted a few of these photos over the years, but today I'm putting up all I have.  We start with a picture in which the two men seem to be sizing each other up at the start of the match.