Eero Tapio

Eero Tapio ( born March 3, 1941 in Muhos ) is a former Finnish wrestler. He was world champion in 1967 and European Champion 1969 in Greco-Roman style in the light welterweight or.

Career

Eero Tapio began in 1950 as a teenager when Ringer Club Haukiputaan Heitto, who belonged to the Finnish Workers' Sports Federation TUL, with the rings. This club he remained faithful until 1973. In 1974 he joined the club Pateniemen Vesa. Eero Tapio specialized in full on the Greco-Roman style, and achieved his first major success in 1960, when he became junior champion of the sports association TUL at lightweight.

On the basis of an agreement with the National Olympic Committee of Finland Ringer of TUL were allowed to start on the international championships of the FILA and at the Olympic Games. Eero Tapio therefore could also start at the Finnish Championships of the official Finnish Ringer Association. In 1964, he won it for the first time the Finnish Championship in the lightweight and qualifying for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. In Tokyo, Eero Tapio showed in lightweight good fights, won twice and wrestled draw against the Romanian top wrestler Valeriu Bularca and reached after defeats against Tokuaki Fujita from Japan and Dawit Gwanzeladse from the USSR a good 6th place.

Even better he fared at the World Championships in 1965 in Tampere. He won there four bouts, defeating amongst other things Muneji Munemura from Japan. But as he three times won only by points and each time was loaded with a missing dot, he left after just one defeat he suffered against Gennady Sapunov from the USSR, but still won the bronze medal.

After a 5th place at the European Championships in Essen in the early summer of 1966, Eero Tapio won in the autumn of the same year at the World Championship in Toledo / USA again the bronze medal. He remained undefeated at the world championship in five battles, but struggled against Munemura, Kazim Ayvaz from Turkey and Stevan Horvat from Yugoslavia undecided. Had succeeded him against any of these three wrestlers a victory, he would have become world champion.

1967 brought Eero Tapio then failed in Toledo at the World Championships in Bucharest to. There he submitted three wins, including one over the Soviet Starter Vladimir Novochatko and two undecided runny fights to win the title. In the spring of 1967 had become Vice-European Champion in the lightweight Eero Tapio in Minsk. He also lost there is no struggle, struggling against Klaus Pohl from the GDR and Gennadi Sapunov undecided.

At the 1968 Olympic Games in Montreal Eero Tapio was very low after the 4th round, but lost in the 5th round, somewhat surprisingly against the German silver medalist from 1964 in free style Klaus rust from Witten and had to retire it.

In 1969 was once again a great year for Eero Tapio. He finished first in the held in Mar del Plata in March Welterweight World Championship after a defeat against Soviet athlete Viktor Igumenow in the finals 2nd place and then in Modena European champion in the welterweight division. Here he filed after a bye in the first round with two wins and a draw against Momir Kecman from Yugoslavia to win the title.

In the following years, Eero Tapio could not achieve such great success more. Although he took the 1972 Munich Olympic Games for the third time to participate, but did not win any Olympic medal there. He then ended his international career Ringer.

Eero Tapio was chosen by the Finnish sports journalist for the Finnish Sportsman of the Year in 1967.

International success

(OS = Olympic Games, WM = World Championship, EM = European Championship, GR = Greco-Roman style, Le = Lightweight, We = welterweight, Mi = middleweight, then to 1968, up to 70 kg, 78 kg and 87 kg, and from 1969-68 kg, 74 kg and 82 kg body weight)

Finnish Championships

Championships of the sports association TUL

Swell

• Journal athletics, numbers: 23/1963, page 16, 1 = 1965, pages 16, 12/1967, page 32, 7/1968, page 32, 9/ 1971, 32, Olympic special editions 1972, page 39
• Documentation of International Wrestling Championships FILA, pages: O- 74, W -64, E- 49, F -71, E -53, W -75, O -84, E-66, W -81, W -103, e-86
• Website of the sports association TUL: www.tulpaini.fi with the results of the Finnish and TUL Championships