1904 Archives - www.oldtimestrongman.com

Oldtime Wrestlers

Posted on Friday, March 11th, 2022 by John Wood

A group of oldtime wrestlers, circa 1904. At the time they were competing in a tournament at the Palast Theatre in Berlin, Germany in April of 1904. Pictured from left to right: Nikola Petroff, Georg Lurich, Ivan Romanoff, Laurent le Beaucairois, Ferdinand Dieckmann, and John Pohl. BTW, Petroff defeated John Pohl in the finals to win the tournament. Laurent le Beaucairois finished third and Lurich fourth.

Alexandre Bedock

Posted on Saturday, January 22nd, 2022 by John Wood

Alexandre Bedock was the steel bending AND boxing champion of South Africa, circa 1904. It’s also not hard to see how proficiency in one of those disciplines will assist in success in the other.

The Tug-o-War Competition at the 1904 Olympics

Posted on Thursday, October 11th, 2018 by John Wood

“St. Louis Missouri — On Wednesday August 30th, 1904, the tug-o-war contest was pulled on the turf without the cleats, the ground having been dug up, so that the men could get some sort of hold with their feet. Six teams had entered for the honors as follows: Boers, South Africa; first and second teams of the Southwestern Turnverein, of St. Louis; Pan-Hellenic team, Greece; Milwaukee Athletic Club, Milwaukee, Wis, New York Athletic Club, New York.

In the prelimininary heats, Milwaukee defeated the Boers; the first St. Louis Turnverein team defeated the Greeks two inches after five minutes of work; and New York Athletic Club defeated the second team of the Southwestern Turnverein of St. Louis by four feet.

On Thursday, September 1st, the final rounds of the Olympic tug-o-war contest were contested and the championship when to Milwaukee Athletic Club, with the two St. Louis teams, West St. Louis Turnverein second and third; forth honors going to the New York Athletic Club.”

Ed Hennig

Posted on Tuesday, October 3rd, 2017 by John Wood

Ed Hennig, from Cleveland, Ohio, is a rather amazing figure in Indian Club lore — first up, he won the very first Olympic Gold medal in Indian Club Swinging at the 1904 Olympic Games in St. Louis Missouri. In this event (contested for the first time), each athlete was allowed five minutes for the performance with a pair of three-pound clubs. Three judges then scored each competitor a maximum of five points each, thus an overall maximum of 15 points. Hennig’s score of 13 points netted him the Gold. (Emil Voight scored 9 points and Ralph Wilson scored 5, both from the US, took Silver and Bronze respectively.)

As far as Indian clubs, Hennig was just getting warmed up, he would win the AAU national title in club swinging in 1904, 1911, 1933, 1936-37, 1939-40, 1942, 1945-47, and 1950-51 — 13 times overall, the last time when he was 71 years of age! Hennig competed as an AAU athlete for over 6o years, likely a record in itself.

Physical Culture, March, 1904

Posted on Friday, September 27th, 2013 by John Wood

A look at the great Al Treloar on the cover of the March, 1904 issue of Bernarr MacFadden’s Physical Culture Magazine. As indicated, Treloar had just won the world’s first international bodybuilding contest. When adjusted for inflation, the $1,000 prize would equal over $25,000 in today’s money. As impressive as he was from a muscular standpoint, Treloar wasn’t all show, he could tear three decks of playing cards at once.