Anton Geesink
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| Olympic medalist | |||
| Image:A.J.Geesink.jpg Anton Geesink |
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| Medal record | |||
| Men's Judo | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 1964 Tokyo | Open class | |
Antonius ("Anton") Johannes Geesink (born April 6, 1934 in Utrecht) is a Dutch 10th dan judoka. He is a 3 time World champion (1961, 1964 and 1965) and Olympic Gold Medalist(1964).[1] He was 6' 7" tall and at one time weighed 320 pounds.
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[edit] Judo career
Geesink first participated in the European Championships in 1951, and placed second in his category. The following year, he won his first European title. Until 1967, 20 more European titles would follow.
At the 1961 World Championships, Geesink became World Champion in the open class, defeating the Japanese, who had won all World Championship titles up to that point.
Judo debuted as an official sport at the 1964 Summer Olympics, which were held in the sports home country, Japan. Although Japan dominated 3 of the 4 weight divisions (light,middle and heavy), Anton Geesink won the final of the open weight division, defeating Akio Kaminaga in front of his home crowd.
After winning the 1965 World Championships and a last European title in 1967, Geesink quit competitive judo.
Anton Geesink is the only living 10th dan grade kodansha recognized by the IJF but not by Kodokan. There are three living 10th dan kodanshas recognized by Kodokan: Toshiro Daigo, Ichiro Abe and Yoshimi Osawa.
[edit] Professional Wrestling Career
In October 1973, All Japan Pro-Wrestling owner Giant Baba recruited Anton Geesink to join AJPW. Baba sent him to Amarillo, TX and Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk trained him for a month. He worked for All Japan from 1973 to 1978, as a popular part-timer.
Notable opponents included Bruno Sammartino, Gorilla Monsoon, Dick Murdoch, Dory Funk Jr., Bob Remus (Sgt. Slaughter), Jumbo Tsuruta.
[edit] International Olympic Committee Career
In 1987, he became a member of the board of the Dutch National Olympic Committee, and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Geesink was among the IOC members suspected of accepting bribes during the scandal surrounding the election of Salt Lake City as the host of the 2002 Winter Olympics. The IOC considered the situation not serious enough for expulsion, and issued a warning to Geesink.
[edit] Trivia
When he was twelve years old, Geesink was beaten up by Rijk de Gooyer, because he was caught stealing bread from De Gooyers bakery-cart. Nowadays, both men are Dutch celebrities: Geesink for his judo career, and De Gooyer is a well known actor in The Netherlands. Both come from the Dutch city of Utrecht.[citation needed]
| Preceded by Klaas Boot |
Dutch Sporter of the Year 1957 |
Succeeded by Gerrit Schulte |
| Preceded by Peter Post |
Dutch Sportsman of the Year 1964 to 1965 |
Succeeded by Ard Schenk / Kees Verkerk |
Categories: Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | 1934 births | Living people | Dutch judoka | Judoka at the 1964 Summer Olympics | Olympic competitors for the Netherlands | IOC members | Olympic gold medalists for the Netherlands | People from Utrecht
