August Neo

August ( Ago) Neo ( born February 12, 1908 in Vihterpalu, community Padise, Harju County; † August 19, 1982 in Aarhus, Denmark) was an Estonian wrestler.

Career

Neo did not begin until the age of 20 in 1928 with the rings. He was animated to the Olympic victories of Osvald Käpp and Voldemar Väli. He progressed quickly and switched to "sport" Tallinn. In 1929 he won for the first time an Estonian Championship, to be followed by freestyle and Greco-Roman style still eleven more in the two styles.

His debut at international championships he gave at the European Championships in 1931 in Greco-Roman wrestling in Prague. He won this light heavyweight battle, had a bye and so came to a good fourth place. But against the elite at the European light heavyweight wrestler Anton Vogedes from Germany, Rudolf Svensson from Sweden and Onni Pellinen from Finland he had to accept yet clear defeats.

At the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles posted Estonia for financial reasons only a small delegation of two wrestlers to which Neo was not one. However, his chances would have been awarded a medal, only three participants were still in his weight class at the start, so each of them won a medal.

At the European Championships in 1934, he started in the middleweight division and won the silver medal. He landed five wins and only lost against Ivar Johansson from Sweden.

In 1935 he finished third in both the European Championships in Greco-Roman wrestling in Copenhagen, as well as at the European Championships in free style in Brussels at light heavyweight. In both events he lost while the Swede Axel Cadier.

Also at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin started in August two styles and was very successful. In the free style, he won the silver medal in Greco- Roman style and the bronze. In free style he was defeated in the final battle Knut Fridell from Sweden just on points and in Greco-Roman wrestling bout against Edvin Bietags from Latvia and Axel Cadier.

Also in 1937 fought Neo at the European Championships in Paris in Greco-Roman wrestling for victory and again he lost a Swedish wrestler, this time it was Nils Åkerlindh. At the European Championships 1938 in Tallinn home he did not attend because he had lost in the excretion against Nikolai Karklin.

At the end of his career, he won again in 1939 in Oslo at the European Championships in Greco -Roman style bronze medal in the light heavyweight division. He was beaten by a wrestler of the new nation Ringer Turkey, Mustafa Cakmak.

Shortly before the invasion of Soviet troops in Neos home country Estonia in 1940 succeeded in this escape to Sweden. He lived there until his death as a businessman in Stockholm.

International success

(OS = Olympic Games, European Championship EM =, F = Freestyle, GR = Greek and Roman. Stylish, Mi = middleweight, Hs = light heavyweight, then to 79 kg or 87 kg body weight)

Swell