Brad Rheingans
| Brad Rheingans | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Brad Rheingans |
| Born | December 13, 1953 |
| Resides | Appleton, Minnesota |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Brad Rheingans |
| Billed height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
| Billed weight | 248 lb (112 kg) |
| Billed from | Appleton, Minnesota |
| Debut | 1980 |
| Retired | 2008 |
Brad Rheingans is an American former Greco-Roman and professional wrestler.
Career
Originally from Appleton, Rheingans was an NCAA Division II[1] champion in 1975 for North Dakota State University and wrestled in the 1976 Olympics, placing fourth.[2][3][4] He qualified for the Olympic team in 1980, but did not compete due to the United States boycott.[2][5] Between Olympics, he placed third for a bronze medal at the 1979 World Wrestling Championships.[6] He was later inducted into the Tribune Hall of Fame.[7]
Rheingans entered professional wrestling with Verne Gagne's American Wrestling Association in 1983, where he appeared until the organization folded in 1991. He also wrestled briefly for the WWF as an enhancement talent in 1986, occasionally for New Japan Pro Wrestling from 1989–1991,[8] and for various independent promotions in the Minnesota area during the early half of the 1990s.
In addition to coaching amateur wrestlers throughout his career, Rheingans also trained numerous professional wrestlers.[9] Some of his well-known students include Big Van Vader, John Layfield, Brock Lesnar, The Nasty Boys, Jerry Lynn, Don Frye,[10] Tom Zenk,[11] Curtis Axel and Tori. Rheingans also served as the head trainer for the short-lived Ladies Professional Wrestling Association.
Rheingans was inducted into the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2004.[5]
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
Championships and accomplishments
Amateur wrestling
- National Collegiate Athletic Association
- NCAA Division I All-American (1975)
- NCAA Division II Champion (1975)
- Olympics Games
- Olympic Games team member (1976, 1980)
Professional wrestling
- Pro Wrestling America
- PWA Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Baron Von Raschke
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
- Rookie of the Year (1981) tied with Brad Armstrong
References
- ↑ NCAA Division II Records through 2011
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Reynolds, Marge (December 24, 1998). "Olympian's story inspires wrestlers Gold medalist overcame cancer". Chicago Daily Herald. p. 1.
- ↑ Reusse, Patrick (March 13, 2009). "Gust missed his Olympic moment; Canby's Brian Gust, who died last weekend, was denied a shot at the Olympics by the 1980 U.S. boycott.". Star Tribune (Minneapolis). pp. 3C.
- ↑ The Bismarck Tribune. March 19, 2009. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Kiniski, Rheingans entering Newton hall". CANOE. July 25, 2004. Retrieved April 28, 2010.
- ↑ FILA Database
- ↑ Thoma, Scott (November 12, 2008). "Tribune Hall of Fame finalists named". West Central Tribune (Minnesota).
- ↑ Costa, Norman Da (February 22, 1990). "Lords of the ring face tough fights in weekend wars". The Toronto Star. pp. D8.
- ↑ Reinitz, Jeff (February 18, 2007). "Wrestling museum is as much about the future as the past". Waterloo Courier (Iowa).
- ↑ Meltzer, Dave (2001). Wrestling Observer's Tributes: Remembering Some of the World's Greatest Wrestlers. Winding Stair Press. p. 52. ISBN 1553660854.
- ↑ Kinney, Pat (February 11, 2007). "Wrestling greats will attend museum's grand opening". Waterloo Courier (Iowa).