Lou Banach

Louis David Banach ( born February 6, 1960 in Newton, New Jersey ) is a former American professional wrestler. In 1984, he was Olympic champion in free style at heavyweight

Career

Lou Banach started together with his twin brother Ed and another brother named Steve, animated by the success of American wrestler Dan Gable and the brothers Peterson at the Olympic Games in Munich in 1972 at Port Jervis High School with the rings. He grew into a handsome heavyweight, just under the 100 kg weighed in at a size of 1.83 meters. As is common in the high schools and later at college, he wrestled only in free style. As the biggest success of his time as a high school wrestler, he has made winning the championship in the light heavyweight division of the State of New York in 1977.

From 1979, he attended the University of Iowa and worked there too very successfully with the rings, to which he was a member of the Hawkeye Wrestling Club, the sports clubs at the University. His coach in those years were Mark Fowler and Taymond Holyk, which later came Dan Gable. Lou Banach was a typical university wrestler, who played only the competitions at universities. At other championships he was not interested. In 1981 he started for the first time in so-called NCAA Championships, which are U.S. American students Championships. This comes Championships in the United States to an enormous importance because almost all top U.S. wrestlers come from the students warehouse. He won this championship in the super heavyweight before none other than Bruce Baumgartner.

In 1982, he came at the NCAA Championships behind this and Steve Williams to 3rd place and in 1983 he won at the NCAA Championships again the title in the Super Heavyweight, where he with a body weight of just over 100 kg to 180 kg colossus Mitch Sheldon shouldered. After gaining this title, he left the University of Iowa and went to the U.S. Army. He coached there in a sports school of the U.S. Military Academy and practiced there even a coach from office.

In 1984 he decided to take part in the Olympic Games in Los Angeles to apply. He defeated this in the U.S. elimination tournament ( Trials ) Greg Gibson. In Los Angeles he won with five quick shoulder victories over Hayri Sezgin, Turkey, Sarr, Senegal, Wayne Brightwell, Canada, Toman Honda, Japan and Joseph Atiyeh of Syria the gold medal in the heavyweight division. Neither before, and after this victory, he denied ever another international championship in wrestling.

After his Olympic victory, he retired at the age of only 24 years of active wrestler sport. He later became coach at Pennsylvania State University, had this job but give up because of a serious illness. He is now a manager in a private company in Wisconsin.

For his contribution to the struggle he was inducted into the " Glen Brand Wrestling Hall of Fame Iowa ".

International success

National success

Note: all matches in free style, OS = Olympic Games, Heavyweight, then to 100 kg Super Heavyweight, at that time more than 100 kg body weight