Kurt Angle

Sep 9, 2009 - by Jamie Cruickshank

Real name: Kurt Steven Angle
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 220 lbs.
Date of birth: December 9, 1968
Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA
Pro debut: 1999
Trained by: Dory Funk Jr.
Finishing move: Ankle Lock Submission

Biography

– In 1987, Angle became a Pennsylvania State Wrestling Champion as a senior at Mt. Lebanon high school in Pittsburgh. Angle was also a linebacker on the football team.
– Angle earned freshman of the year honors at Clarion University in 1988. He earned two NCAA championships, one as a sophomore and the other as a senior.
– In 1989, Angle placed second in the Espoir World Cup and the Yasar Dogu Tournament (Turkey).
– Angle won the Canadian Cup Championship in 1990.
– Following college graduation, Angle accepted various wrestling-coaching jobs and started training for the Olympics.
– Despite not playing college football, Angle received a try out for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
– Angle defeated Abbas Jadidi of Iran via referee’s decision, to win the 1996 Olympic Freestyle Wrestling Gold Medal at 220 pounds.
– A tearful Angle received his Olympic Gold metal on July 31, 1996.
– Angle was first contacted about joining the WWF in 1996. At the time, Angle claimed pro wrestling was not in his future.
– In the summer of 1998, Angle became of a fan of the WWF. A short time later, he contacted WWF Chairman Vince McMahon to see if the company still had interest in his services.
– In October 1998, Angle signed a five-year contract with the World Wrestling Federation.
– Upon completing his training at the WWF Funkin’ Dojo, Angle was sent to Power Pro Wrestling in Memphis for development.
– Angle defeated the “Irish Assassin” Mic Tierney on April 2, 1999, in a “Salute the Flag” match.
– On July 24, 1999, Angle defeated J.R. Smooth (Rikishi) for the Power Pro Wrestling title in Memphis, TN.
– Angle made his pay-per-view debut at the 1999 Survivor Series. He defeated Shawn Stasiak.
– Angle defeated Steve Blackman on December 12, 1999, at “Armageddon.”
– On February 8, 2000, Angle defeated Val Venis for the European title in Austin, TX.
– At No Way Out, Angle beat Chris Jericho for the Intercontinental title in Hartford, CT.
– Angle defeated Chris Benoit at the U.K. only pay-per-view Insurrextion in London.
– On the June 12, 2000 episode of “Raw,” Angle interfered in the Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley vs. Lita WWF Women’s title match, allowing Stephanie to retain the title.
– Angle defeated Jericho, Crash Holly, and Rikishi to become the first King of the Ring of the new millennium.
– Despite tension between Triple H and Angle over Stephanie, the duo defeated the Acolytes on the August 21, 2000 episode of “Raw.”
– On the August 24, 2000 edition of “Smackdown,” Stephanie and Angle finally shared a kiss.
– The following week, Angle defeated Eddy Guerrero with Stephanie in his corner. Stephanie was urged to join Angle by commissioner Foley.
– On September 13, 2000, Angle worked an UPW (Ultimate Pro Wrestling) show, an affiliate of the WWF’s. Angle defeated WWF hopeful Christopher Daniels.
– Angle teamed with Benoit on the September 29, 2000 episode of “Smackdown” to defeat The Rock and Triple H.
– Angle defeated Triple H on the October 2, 2000 episode of “Raw” to become the number one contender to the WWF title.
– With Stephanie voluntarily in his corner, Angle pinned Kane on the October 12, 2000 edition of “Smackdown” Stephanie announced that her relationship with Angle was purely a business arrangement.
– At No Mercy in Albany, NY, Angle defeated The Rock in a no disqualification match to capture the WWF title.
– At Survivor Series ’00, Angle successfully defended the WWF title against the Undertaker.
– Angle pinned The Rock in the six man Hell In the Cell match at Armageddon to successfully defend the WWF title against Steve Austin, Rikishi, Triple H, and the Undertaker.
– At the 2001 Royal Rumble, Angle (who had Trish Stratus in his corner for a time) pinned Triple H to retain the WWF title.
– At Wrestlemania XVII in Houston, TX, Angle pinned Benoit.
– Angle defeated Benoit in a best “2 out of 3 falls/ladder” match, thanks to outside interference from Edge and Christian, to regain his Olympic Gold metals at Judgment Day 2001.
– On June 2, 2001 in Stillwater, OK, Angle was inducted into the National Amateur Wrestling Hall of Fame.
– Nine days later, Angle defeated Benoit in a steel cage match on “Raw.”
– At the 2001 King of the Ring, Angle beat Shane McMahon in a bloody “street fight” match.
– At the July 24, 2001 “Smackdown” television taping in Pittsburgh, PA, Angle pinned Booker T for the WCW title.
– On the September 10, 2001 episode of “Raw,” Angle defeated Rob Van Dam for the WWF Hardcore title, but moments later, Van Dam regained it thanks to interference from Austin.
– At Unforgiven ’01 in Pittsburgh, PA, Angle forced Austin to submit and captured the WWF title.
– On the October 22, 2001 edition of “Raw,” Angle defeated Rhyno for the WCW United States title in Kansas City, MO.
– One week later on “Raw,” Angle turned against team WWF and joined the Alliance.
– At No Way Out ’02, Angle defeated Triple H. Stephanie served as the special guest referee.
– At Wrestlemania X-8 in Toronto, Angle defeated Kane.
– At Backlash ’02, Angle downed Edge.
– A bald headed Angle defeated Hulk Hogan at the 2002 King of the Ring PPV in Columbus, OH.
– At Summerslam ’02, Angle defeated Rey Mysterio Jr.
– At No Mercy ’02 in Little Rock, AR, Angle and Benoit defeated Edge and Mysterio Jr. to capture the newly created Smackdown brand Tag Team title.
– Angle defeated the Big Show at Armageddon ’02 in Ft. Lauderdale, FL to capture the WWE title.
– On the December 19, 2002 episode of “Smackdown,” Angle introduced Paul Heyman as his agent.
– At Royal Rumble ’03, Angle successfully defended the WWE title against Chris Benoit.
– On April 11, 2003, Angle underwent neck surgery by Dr. Hae-Dong Jho.
– At Vengeance ’03 in Denver, CO, Angle won a three way match over Brock Lesnar and the Big Show to regain the WWE title.
– At Summerslam ’03, Angle defeated Lesnar to successfully retain the WWE title.
– Angle defeated John Cena at the 2003 No Mercy PPV in Baltimore, MD.
– At the 2003 Survivor Series, Team Angle (Angle, Benoit, Cena, Bradshaw and Hardcore Holly) defeated Team Lesnar (Lesnar, Matt Morgan, Nathan Jones, Big Show, and A-Train).
– At No Way Out ’04, Angle defeated Cena and the Big Show in a three way match to earn a WWE title show at Wrestlemania XX.
– On March 23, 2004, Angle was named “General Manager” for the Smackdown brand.
– At Summerslam ’04 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Angle defeated Eddy Guerrero.
– At Wrestlemania 21 in Los Angeles, CA, Angle forced Shawn Michaels to submit to his ankle lock submission.
– On the June 13, 2005 edition of “Raw,” Angle was the second pick in the 2005 draft lottery by Eric Bischoff.
– After losing his Olympic gold metal to Eugene, Angle regained it at Summerslam ’05.
– At the January 10, 2006 Smackdown tapings in Philadelphia, PA, Angle (moving over from Raw) won a battle royal to capture the vacate World Heavyweight title.
– Angle defeated Mark Henry at the 2006 Royal Rumble to retain the World Heavyweight title.
– Angle defeated The Undertaker at the 2006 No Way Out to remain World champion.
– On the May 29, 2006 edition of “Raw,” Paul Heyman drafted Angle from Smackdown to the ECW roster.
– At One Night Stand 2, Angle defeated Randy Orton.
– On August 25, 2006, WWE’s web site announced “Due to personal issues, Kurt Angle has been granted an early release from his contract.”
– At the September 24, 2006 PPV No Surrender, TNA revealed Angle coming in as the company’s promised major announcement.
– In his first TNA match, Angle defeated Abyss on the “Impact” special on November 16, 2006.
– At Genesis ’06, Angle forced Samoa Joe to tap out, ending his unbeaten streak.
– At Final Resolution ’07, Angle defeated Samoa Joe 3-2 in a 30-minute iron man match to earn a NWA title shot at Against All Odds ’07.
– On February 18, 2007, Angle and Yuji Nagata defeated Travis Tomko and Giant Bernard in Tokyo, Japan.
– At Destination X ’07, Angle defeated Scott Steiner.
– At Lockdown ’07, Team Angle (Angle, Sting, Rhino, Samoa Joe, Jeff Jarrett) defeated Team Cage (Christian Cage, Scott Steiner, Abyss, Tomko, and AJ Styles) in a lethal lockdown cage match.
– Angle defeated Sting and Christian Cage at Sacrifice ’07 in Orlando, FL to capture the NWA/TNA World Heavyweight title.
– Angle won the 2007 King of the Mountain match over Chris Harris, Samoa Joe, Christian Cage and AJ Styles to become the first TNA World Heavyweight champion.
– On June 29, 2007, Angle defeated Brock Lesnar in Tokyo at Antonio Inoki’s IGF debut show.
– Angle defeated Samoa Joe in a “Winner Takes All” match to claim the TNA X Division and Tag Team Titles at Hard Justice ’07.
– After dropping the TNA Tag Team and X-Division titles earlier in the evening, Angle defeated Abyss at No Surrender ’07 to retain the TNA title.
– Days after dropping the TNA title to Sting at Bound for Glory, Angle regained the champion during the October 16, 2007 Impact tapings in Orlando, FL.
– At Genesis ’07, Angle and Kevin Nash defeated Sting and Booker T; Angle retains the TNA World Heavyweight title.
– On December 20, 2007, Angle defeated Kendo Kashin at a IGF show in Tokyo.
– Angle defeated Yuji Nagata on New Japan’s Tokyo Dome show on January 4, 2008.
– At Final Resolution ’08, Angle defeated Christian Cage.
– Angle defeated Cage at Against All Odds ’08 to retain the TNA World title.
– At Turning Point ’08, Angle defeated Abyss.
– Angle defeated Rhino at the December ’08 Final Resolution PPV.
– At Genesis ’09, Angle defeated Jeff Jarrett in a No Disqualification match.
– At Slammiversary ’09, Angle defeated AJ Styles, Jeff Jarrett, Mick Foley and Samoa Joe at Slammiversary ’09 in Auburn Hills, MI to win the TNA title.
– On August 15, 2009, Pittsburgh-based NBC affiliate WPXI reported that Angle had been arrested. His girlfriend stated that she had filed a protection from abuse order and that he was stalking her. Angle was charged with “driving while operating privilege is suspended, prohibited acts-possession, harassment and prohibited acts”. Hygetropin, a human growth hormone, was found in his car; Angle maintained that he had a prescription for the drug.
– The next day, Angle defeated Sting and Matt Morgan to retain the TNA World Heavyweight title at Hard Justice ’09.
– At Bound for Glory ’09, Angle defeated Matt Morgan.
– At Turning Point ’09, Angle defeated Desmond Wolfe.
– At Final Resolution ’09, Angle defeated Wolfe in a three “degrees of pain” match.
– Angle was voted the GERWECK.NET Wrestler of the Decade in early 2010.
– Angle was voted into the GERWECK.NET Hall of Fame on April 30, 2011.
– At Sacrifice ’11, Chyna and Angle defeated Karen and Jeff Jarrett.
– At Slammiversary ’11, Angle defeated Jeff Jarett.
– Angle defeated Sting at Hardcore Justice ’11 in Orlando, FL to regain the TNA championship.
– At No Surrender ’11, Angle defeated Sting and Mr. Anderson in a three-way to retain the TNA title.
– At Bound for Glory ’11, Angle defeated Bobby Roode to remain TNA champion.
– Angle defeated AJ Styles at Sacrifice ’12.
– At Slammiversary ’12 in Arlington, TX, Angle and AJ Styles defeated Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian for the TNA Tag Team titles.
– At Turning Point ’12, Angle defeated Devon.
– At Final Resolution ’12, Angle, Samoa Joe, Garett Bischoff & Wes Brisco defeated Aces & Eights (Devon, DOC, Knox & CJ O’Doyle). Doyle & Knox wore masks for the match and their identities were not revealed.
– At One Night Only: Ten Reunion, Angle defeated Samoa Joe.
– At Slammiversary XI, Angle defeated AJ Styles.
– At Hardcore Justice ’13, Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, James Storm & Abyss) defeated Team Roode (Bobby Roode, Magnus, Robbie E & Jessie Godderz) in a Lethal Lockdown Match.
– On August 2, 2013, Angle was admitted to rehab for drug and alcohol abuse.
– Angle returned to TNA in October ’13.
– Angle was inducted in to the TNA Hall of Fame at Bound for Glory ’13.
– At One Night Only: #OldSchool, Angle defeated Mr Anderson.
– At One Night Only: World Cup ’14, Angle defeated Magnus.
– At Sacrifice ’14, Angle & Willow defeated Ethan Carter III & Rockstar Spud.
– In May ’14, Angle underwent knee surgery and was ruled out for several months.
– In June 2014, Angle returned to TNA in a non-wrestling authority role.
– On January 7, 2015, Angle returned to in-ring action, defeating MVP in a Street Fight.
– On January 31, 2015, Angle defeated Lashley to win the TNA World Title.
– On March 31, 2016, Angle was inducted into the WWE hall of fame.
– On the April 3, 2017 episode of Raw, Mr. McMahon appointed Angle as the new general manager of Raw.
– On October 20, it was announced that Angle would return to the ring, replacing the ill Roman Reigns at that week’s TLC event
– At TLC ’17, Angle, Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose defeated Braun Strowman, Kane, The Miz, Sheamus & Cesaro in a TLC Match
– At Survivor Series ’17, Team Raw (Angle, Triple H, Braun Strowman, Finn Balor & Samoa Joe) defeated Team Smackdown (Shane McMahon, Randy Orton, John Cena, Shinsuke Nakamura & Bobby Roode) in an Elimination Match
– At WrestleMania 34, Angle & Ronda Rousey defeated Triple H & Stephanie McMahon
– In August 2018, Angle was removed as Raw General Manager in favour of Baron Corbin
– On October 8, Angle returned to Raw (as the masked ‘Conquistador’) and won a Battle Royal match, last eliminating Baron Corbin, to qualify for the WWE World Cup Tournament
– In March 2019, Angle announced that he would retire from in-ring competition following WrestleMania 35. He hand-picked Baron Corbin as his opponent for his retirement match at the event
– Corbin defeated Angle at WrestleMania 35. On the Raw following WrestleMania, Angle attacked Corbin, but was then attacked himself by the debuting Lars Sullivan
– Following the event, Angle announced that he had signed a contract to act as a backstage mentor for new talent on the Raw and Smackdown rosters
– In April 2020, Angle was released from his WWE contract for cost-cutting reasons, though he has made occasional appearances since

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