Black Widow
08-18-2008, 02:10 PM
I can't let Mark Ashenden win so easily with his Dolph Lundgren Olympic interview, so last week I rang up our entertainment team and demanded they find a better celeb, with a better Olympic story. Here goes.
Hulk Hogan against Buvaisar Saitiev. Stone Cold against Khadjimourat Gatsalov. The Rock against Artur Taymazov. Who would win?
Three were stars of professional wrestling, three were wrestling gold medallists at the Athens Olympics. Now I wouldn't be overly keen on meeting Stone Cold down a dark alley on a wet Tuesday night, but amateur wrestling dispenses with a script, lots of fancy lighting and a few lorry-loads of stage make-up, in favour of pure sport.
So it's nice to hear The Rock, otherwise known as pro-wrestler-turned-movie-star Dwayne Johnson, paying tribute to Olympic wrestling.
"I've got a good buddy named Kurt Angle who's just an outstanding wrestler," the six-times WWE champion told our reporter Colin Paterson.
"Kurt won the gold medal in 1996 with a broken neck, he was unbelievable. I'm not kidding, he'd actually broken his neck and still won the gold in his weight class.
"I'm always blown away by the amount of discipline and hard work it takes for those Olympians to get where they're at."
Angle's career path reads a bit like that of aspiring British Olympic boxers. We talk a lot about fighters like Amir Khan, Audley Harrison and, this year, Frankie Gavin, who can use the Olympics to make the step up from amateur to pro.
The gulf between the two, big enough in boxing, must be very difficult to bridge in wrestling (after all, you're grappling with lines of script as much as you are opponents). But Angle spent almost a decade in the WWE following his gold medal at Atlanta, even inventing a move known as the "Olympic slam" during his career.
Not that The Rock's purely focused on wrestling - his other Olympic love is the track and field, but which discipline?
"I'd have to say the 400m. I love seeing those type of athletes just going at it, running. In all the track and field events you're looking at some of the greatest athletes on the planet."
Pay attention, Martyn Rooney. The Rock will be watching your every move in Beijing. And Dolph who?
Listen Here. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/olympics/wrestling/7505499.stm)
BBC News
Hulk Hogan against Buvaisar Saitiev. Stone Cold against Khadjimourat Gatsalov. The Rock against Artur Taymazov. Who would win?
Three were stars of professional wrestling, three were wrestling gold medallists at the Athens Olympics. Now I wouldn't be overly keen on meeting Stone Cold down a dark alley on a wet Tuesday night, but amateur wrestling dispenses with a script, lots of fancy lighting and a few lorry-loads of stage make-up, in favour of pure sport.
So it's nice to hear The Rock, otherwise known as pro-wrestler-turned-movie-star Dwayne Johnson, paying tribute to Olympic wrestling.
"I've got a good buddy named Kurt Angle who's just an outstanding wrestler," the six-times WWE champion told our reporter Colin Paterson.
"Kurt won the gold medal in 1996 with a broken neck, he was unbelievable. I'm not kidding, he'd actually broken his neck and still won the gold in his weight class.
"I'm always blown away by the amount of discipline and hard work it takes for those Olympians to get where they're at."
Angle's career path reads a bit like that of aspiring British Olympic boxers. We talk a lot about fighters like Amir Khan, Audley Harrison and, this year, Frankie Gavin, who can use the Olympics to make the step up from amateur to pro.
The gulf between the two, big enough in boxing, must be very difficult to bridge in wrestling (after all, you're grappling with lines of script as much as you are opponents). But Angle spent almost a decade in the WWE following his gold medal at Atlanta, even inventing a move known as the "Olympic slam" during his career.
Not that The Rock's purely focused on wrestling - his other Olympic love is the track and field, but which discipline?
"I'd have to say the 400m. I love seeing those type of athletes just going at it, running. In all the track and field events you're looking at some of the greatest athletes on the planet."
Pay attention, Martyn Rooney. The Rock will be watching your every move in Beijing. And Dolph who?
Listen Here. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/olympics/wrestling/7505499.stm)
BBC News