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Laurent Gerstmans

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Laurent Gerstmans
Born(1885-02-26)26 February 1885
Antwerp, Belgium
DiedApril 3, 1955

Laurent Gerstmans (26 February 1885 – 3 April 1955[1]) was a Belgian wrestler. He competed in the heavyweight event at the 1912 Summer Olympics.[2][3]

Information

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Gerstmans was a dock worker originally.[4] He was said to be a legend of the Antwerp wrestling scene and was nicknamed, "Apollo".[4] He was a European wrestling champion and had once competed for a version of the world heavyweight title.[5][6] Gertmans also competed as a professional boxer[7][8] and once defeated Japanese jiu-hitsu legend Mikinosuke Kawaishi in a match.[5] Gertsmans wrestled in places such as England and Madison Square Garden throughout his career.[9]

After retiring from the ring, he opened Café Jozef in Astridplein.[4] He was later honored with a mural on Constitutiestraat 11 street in Antwerp, Belgium.[4] In 2015, a professional wrestling tournament was held in Antwerp called the "Laurent Gerstmans Cup".[10]

References

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  1. ^ "Laurent Gerstmans". Olympedia. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Laurent Gerstmans Olympic Results". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
  3. ^ Laurent Gerstmans, Schoonselhof, 2024, retrieved 12 April 2023
  4. ^ a b c d 57 Laurent Gerstmans [57 Laurent Gerstmans] (in Dutch), willbrordus.be, 2023, retrieved 13 March 2023
  5. ^ a b The Belgian Goliath, wrestlingheritage.co.uk, 1996, retrieved 12 April 2023
  6. ^ The Man of All Talents:The Extraordinary Life of Douglas Duggy Clark, publisher: Pitch Publishing, published: 2020, url: https://books.google.com/books?id=y8tHEAAAQBAJ&dq=Laurent+Gerstmans&pg=PT217
  7. ^ Laurent Gerstmans, Boxrec, 2024, retrieved 12 April 2023
  8. ^ Sport in 't stad:Antwerpen 1830-1914, publisher: Universitaire Pers Leuven, published: 2006, url: https://books.google.com/books?id=y8tHEAAAQBAJ&dq=Laurent+Gerstmans&pg=PT217
  9. ^ The History of Professional Wrestling, publisher: Scott Teal, published: 2009, url:https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_History_of_Professional_Wrestling/-THYAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Laurent+Gerstmans&dq=Laurent+Gerstmans&printsec=frontcover
  10. ^ Laurent Gerstmans Cup, Cagematch, 2015, retrieved 12 April 2023
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