Schuetz

When Kurt Angle joined the world of professional wrestling he used the catchphrase: "Intensity, Integrity and Intelligence), the three I's. But it isn't the three I's that define Kurt Angle, rather it is one word: DEDICATION. The man just will not quit

From his earliest days in sports, Kurt Angle has always shown a drive to win and to be the best at whatever he was competing in. It's not just a Sports Entertainment boast, he really did win his gold medal with a "broken freaking neck!"

THE EARLY YEARS

Born Kurt Steven Angle on December 9th 1968 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Angle always excelled in sports. He was a football and wrestling star in his hometown and rapidly rose to be one of the top amateur wrestlers in the United States winning 2 NCAA titles in the heavyweight division (1990 and 1992). He went on to international success when he won a gold medal at the World Championship in 1995.

In 1996 though Angle took his success to a whole other level when he won a Gold Medal in the Atlanta Olympic Games for the 220 pound freestyle wrestling class. His instant fame was such that he was given a tryout for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

ENTERING PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING

Angle began to flirt with Pro-Wrestling very soon after his Olympic win. In fact he appeared briefly at an ECW show just months later. He didn't wrestle at the show, but was a guest commentator for a match featuring Taz. There had been plans to have him more actively involved with the promotion, however he was offended by another angle that ECW ran (the Sandman crucifixion) and is reported to have stormed out of the arena.

Kurt signed with the then WWF in 1998 and after a short while at their developmental territory of the time (Power Pro Wrestling in Memphis) he made his TV debut on November 14th 1999 playing a moralizing and self-satisfied character and referencing the three I's of intensity, integrity and intelligence.

The WWF had high hopes for Angle and pushed him heavily with title wins and victories over many established WWF names. During the course of his first year Angle won the King of the Ring tournament, the European Title and the Intercontinental Title. The push finally resulted in winning the WWF World Heavyweight Championship in a match against The Rock on October 22nd 2000.

Kurt Angle continued to wrestle at the top of the WWE's roster for the next several years, accumulating several more title wins. Unfortunately from 2003 onwards the damage he had previously done to his neck became a greater problem and he required time off to heal on several occasions. Angle actually considered taking time off to train and compete in the 2004 Olympics, but gave up that plan when he discovered just how bad the damage to his neck was. Instead after a brief absence of 3 months for neck surgery, Angle regained the title in June of 2003 and continued to wrestle for WWE week in and week out.

Over the next 3 years Angle continued wrestling, holding the championship again and always involved in a top level feud either on RAW, or Smackdown. Despite several absences to recuperate from his injuries, Angle always came back to give 100% in the ring and present the fans with some of the best matches that WWE had to offer.

When the WWE decided to revive the ECW promotion, they picked Angle to be the star and new face to sell this promotion to the WWE audience, but finally the damage his body had taken after years of wrestling proved too much.

INJURIES

Over the course of his career, Kurt Angle has sustained many injuries that would normally end a sportsman's career. Yet in each case through sheer stubborn will power he has gone on to continued success.

The most famous of those injuries was his broken neck. In the 1996 Olympic Trials, he cracked 2 vertebrae, herniated 2 discs and pulled 4 muscles. Easily enough to sideline them. However he managed to win the trials and then through a combination of rehab and pain killing shots he was able to win the Gold Medal.

The next famous injury incident also involves Angle's neck. In 2003, Angle was scheduled to wrestle then champion Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania. As usual, Angle toughed it out and went ahead with the match (a match which ironically featured Lesnar coming dangerously close to breaking his own neck). In April, only weeks after competing, Angle went in for neck surgery. Taking only 14 weeks off to recuperate, he was back wrestling (and winning the title) in June of the same year.

By March of 2004, Angle's neck problems were as bad as ever, but he refused to take the surgery that might end his career and after a brief respite where he played the Smackdown General Manager on TV, he returned to wrestling again.

Finally the accumulated injuries proved too much for Angle. WWE gave him a 30 day rest in June of this year (shortly after he moved to ECW), however on returning from his break, he immediately re-injured himself.

On August 25th, 2006 Kurt Angle was granted an early release from his WWE contract due to personal issues.

Is this the last we will see of Angle in the wrestling ring? Somehow I think that very unlikely.

Ring Name: Kurt Angle Height: 5 feet 11 inches Weight: 220 lbs Trained by: Dory Funk, Jr.and Tom Pritchard Signature Moves: The Angle Slam and the Ankle Lock

AMATEUR WRESTLING ACHIEVEMENTS

-1987 Pennsylvania State Wrestling Champion

-1990 Canadian Cup Championship Winner

-1990 NCAA Champion

-1992 NCAA Champion

-1995 World Championship Winner

-1996 Olympic Gold Medal Winner

PRO-WRESTLING ACHIEVEMENTS

-King of the Ring 2000

-1 time WWE European Champion

-1 Time WWF Hardcore Champion

-1 time WWE Intercontinental Champion

-1 time WCW United States Champion

-1 time WWE Tag Team Champion

-1 Time WCW World Heavyweight Champion

-1 time World Heavyweight Champion

-4 time WWE World Heavyweight Champion

Eoghann Irving runs the Professional Wrestling News site Pro-Wrestling News Direct. A wrestling fanatic he posts reviews of all the national pro-wrestling tv shows each week in addition to daily news and rumor updates. Eoghann can be contacted at webmaster@sflare.com Pro-Wrestling News Direct Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eoghann_Irving