Wrestling
b. April 27, 1878, Humboldt, IA
d. Dec. 16, 1917
Gotch was the last of the genuine world champion professional wrestlers. Trained by the first great American champion, Martin "Farmer" Burns, Gotch lost a championship match to Tom Jenkins in 1903, but beat Jenkins the following year.
He lost the title briefly in 1906 when he banged his head against a ring post and was knocked out during a match against Freddie Beall. However, Gotch easily regained the championship in a rematch and he held the title until his retirement in 1913.
The 5-foot-11, 200-pound Gotch won 154 of 160 professional matches. He had two celebrated bouts with European champion George Hackenschmidt. The first, on April 3, 1908, drew a crowd of more than 40,000 people to the Dexter Park Pavilion in Chicago. After more than two hours without a fall, Hackenschmidt quit and Gotch was awarded the victory. Three years later, they met again in Chicago. Hackenschmidt had suffered torn cartilage in his right knee during practice and Gotch threw him twice in a short time to win again.
A national celebrity, Gotch toured the U. S. and Europe in a play to capitalize on his fame and never wrestled seriously again, though he gave some boxing exhibitions. He died at thirty-nine of uremic poisoning.
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