Wim Ruska
 Wim Ruska in 1968 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born |
29 August 1940 Amsterdam, the Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 14 February 2015 (aged 74) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 94 kg (207 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Judo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Willem "Wim" Ruska (29 August 1940 – 14 February 2015) was a judoka from the Netherlands. He is the only athlete to win two judo medals in one Olympics – in the heavyweight and absolute categories in 1972.[1]
He started mastering in Judo in 1960 and traveled to Japan for training. In the 1960s and 1970s he won seven European titles, five in the +93 kg category (1966–67, 1969, 1971–72) and two in the open category (1969 and 1972).[2] He furthermore won two world titles (1967 and 1971) and two Olympic titles.[1] His success at the 1972 Summer Olympics was overshadowed by the Munich massacre that took place days before.[3]
He retired after the 1972 Olympics[1] and later took part in professional wrestling, competing between 1976 and 1980 for the New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation promotions. He had over 150 pro wrestling matches, in some of which he was the tag team partner of fellow judoka Allen Coage.[4] In August 1976, he defeated Ivan Gomes in a vale tudo bout in Brazil.[5]
In 2001 Ruska suffered a major stroke which left him physically disabled.[1]
In 2013 he was inducted in the Hall of Fame of the International Judo Federation.[6]
Ruska was admitted to a nursing home in 2014. Ruska died on 14 February 2015 at the age of 74 and was survived by his wife, two children and five grandchildren.[7]
Gallery
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Ruska in 1968
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Ruska with family in 1972
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Wim Ruska. sports-reference.com
- ↑ Obtained results (dutch). Wimruska.nl. Retrieved on 2012-11-16.
- ↑ "Wim Ruska op 74-jarige leeftijd overleden" (in Dutch). Algemeen Dagblad. 14 February 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ↑ http://www.cagematch.de/?id=2&nr=5938&page=4
- ↑ http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~YF7M-ON/ekakunen.html
- ↑ "Judolegende Wim Ruska overleden" (in Dutch). de Telegraaf. 14 February 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ↑ "Oud-olympisch judokampioen Wim Ruska op 74-jarige leeftijd overleden" (in Dutch). NU.nl. 14 February 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wim Ruska. |
- Wim Ruska Dutch homepage
- Videos of Wim Ruska on Judovision
- Wim Ruska at JudoInside.com
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