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Kurt Angle (born December 9, 1968 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is a former Olympic Gold Medalist at Wrestling and now a professional wrestler performing for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).

Angle had a distinguished career in amateur wrestling even before winning in the Olympics. He was a 2-time NCAA Division I champion and a 3-time NCAA Division I All-American while attending Clarion University. He was also 1987 USA Junior Freestyle champion, 2-time USA Senior Freestyle champion, and 1988 USA FILA Junior World Freestyle champion. Angle reached the pinnacle of his amateur career at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, winning the 100 kg (220-pound) freestyle wrestling competition.

Not long after his Olympic success, he decided to enter the world of professional wrestling. Four years after earning Olympic gold, Angle entered WWE for the first time in 1999 (where he defeated The Godfather) and earned professional wrestling gold.

Just weeks after entering WWE, Angle earned the European Title. A short time later he earned the Intercontinental Championship as well as the Hardcore Championship; he also won the 2000 King of the Ring. Kurt Angle's crowning achievement came when he defeated The Rock at No Mercy to win the WWE Championship. Kurt Angle is considered one of the best wrestlers ever only after a short career.

His most famous feud was with Brock Lesnar, although he has feuded with many of the top names of WWE. He is most noted for his comedic angles such as his stint with Team ECK, featuring Edge and Christian and his role during the Invasion angle with Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Angle seriously considered trying to make a comeback to freestyle wrestling for the 2004 Summer Olympics, but he abandoned that plan late in 2002, when neck problems that dated back to his past amateur wrestling career recurred. In WWE promos, he often claimed that he had won the Olympic gold medal with a broken neck. Unlike most statements in promos, this one was largely true; he had indeed won his gold medal with two fractured cervical vertebrae.

In 2003, after the aforementioned neck problems led to an almost career-ending injury, he opted for a new type of surgery that allowed him to return in two months rather than a year. However, in March 2004, his neck problems recurred yet again, and it was feared that he would have to undergo possibly career-ending surgery. For a time, he considered having an operation similar to the one he had in 2003, but has decided against it for the time being. He also injured his knee in late 2003.

Angle returned to the ring in July 2004 at a WWE house show in Japan. He has publicly said that he will work a reduced in-ring schedule in the future, and is reportedly planning to change his wrestling style to reduce the risk of further damage to his neck.

During late 2003 and the first half of 2004, Angle played the role of General Manager of Smackdown! He was "fired" from that position and returned to the active roster during a Smackdown! taping on July 20 (aired on July 22).

Finisher/Signature Moves

• Angle Slam/Olympic Slam
• Ankle Lock/Angle Lock
• Triple German Suplexes

External links

• Angle's IMDB entry
• Angle's WWE bio

• Professional wrestlers
• Olympic athletes