Aimo Mäenpää

Aimo Matias Mäenpää ( born January 30, 1937 in Isokyrö ) is a former Finnish wrestler. He was Vice-European Champion in 1969 and 1964 and 1972 Olympian in Greco- Roman style.

Career

Aimo Mäenpää began as a teenager with the rings. He was first a member of the Sport Club Oulu Pyrintö. After becoming a police officer, he became a member of the Sport Club Jyväskylä Poliisi - Urheilijat. At national level, he wrestled in two styles, the Greco-Roman and free style. In international championships, he focused entirely on the Greco- Roman style.

In 1963 he became Finnish Champion for the first time. He won the title here in free style at light heavyweight (then to 97 kg body weight). Although he was already 26 years old at the time of his first title gain, he won over his long career until 1973 another 20 Finnish championship titles in two styles.

In 1963, he was also in a Finnish wrestler team that struggled against Sweden. He was defeated by Per Svensson, Lennart Persson but defeated. In 1964 he qualified for participation in the Olympic Games in Tokyo. He defeated there in the light heavyweight Akira Nakaura from Japan and Eugen meadow Berger from Austria respectively on points and lost to eventual Olympic champion Bojan Radev from Bulgaria on shoulders, which he resigned because he had reached the maximum number of penalties of six. He came in the final accounts on the 10th Place.

1966 cut Aimo Mäenpää both at the European Championships in Essen and at the World Championships in Toledo, Ohio very honorably from. Both times he won the light heavyweight the 5th Place. In Essen he won it on Jürgen blade from the GDR, Josip Corak from Yugoslavia and gates Hem from Norway. In Toledo, he won over Yacoub Abousalloum from Lebanon and Gets Johannes Viljoen from the Netherlands and wrestled against Nicolae Martinescu from Romania a draw.

Aimo Mäenpää was also at the European Championships 1967 in Minsk at the start. He was also there to two wins before he lost to Vasily Merkulov from the USSR, which meant his leaving again for 6 penalty points. He came on the 7th Place. In 1968 he occupied at the Nordic Championship behind Per Svensson and gates Hem 3rd place, could not qualify for the European Championships, nor for the Olympic Games in Mexico City this year.

In 1969 he took in Modena advantage of the situation, as in the European Championship most very strong teams from the Eastern bloc countries were missing and won in the heavyweight division, a weight class that in 1969 after a weight class reform by the International Wrestling Federation its limit at 100 kg body weight had, with wins over Lü Gürbüz from Turkey and Francesco Filipponi from Italy and one defeat in the final battle against Per Svensson an EM silver medal.

After a two year hiatus in international championships Aimo Mäenpää succeeded in 1972 a comeback. He finished at the European Championships in Katowice with wins over Marin Kolev of Bulgaria and Leif Nordstrom from Sweden and defeats Nikolai Yakovenko from the USSR and Nicolae Martinescu a good 6th place. Then he also managed to qualify once again for participating in the Olympic Games in Munich. In Munich he came in the heavyweight division after losing to Christ Ignatow from Bulgaria and gates Hem but only on the 11th Place.

After a 2nd place at the Nordic Championships 1973 at super heavyweight He finished his international career Ringer.

International success

Note: all contests in Greco -Roman style, OS = Olympic Games, WM = World Championship, EM = European, Light Heavyweight until 1968-97 kg from 1969 up to 90 kg, Heavyweight, and 1968 over 97 kg from 1969-100 kg Super Heavyweight, from 1969 to 100 kg body weight

Finnish Championships

Between 1963 and 1973, won a total of 21 Aimo Mäenpää Finnish championship titles in two styles in weight classes heavyweight, heavy or super heavyweight

Swell

• Documentation of International Wrestling Championships FILA, 1976
• Database of the Institute for Applied Training Science at the University of Leipzig,
• Journal Athletics