Dennis Hall (wrestler)

Hall at the 1996 awards ceremony in Atlanta

Dennis Hall (born February 5, 1971 ) is a retired American wrestler . He was world champion in 1995 and silver medalist at the 1996 Olympics in Greco-Roman style bantamweight.

Career

Dennis Hall grew up in Plover ( Wisconsin ) and started at the age of four years and his brother with the rings . He later attended Hartford Union High School and the University of Wisconsin, where he continued the sport. In the late 1980s , he won the Wisconsin State Student Championship twice. In addition, he also wrestled for the team "Stevens Point" and then, when he had already achieved his first major successes, went to one of the most famous US wrestling clubs, the "Sunkist Kids" in Phoenix . There he was trained by the former world champion Steve Fraser , who worked there as a trainer, to become a world-class wrestler in the Greco-Roman style.

In 1992 Dennis won the USA bantamweight championship for the first time. He won this title ten times in a row by 2001. His international wrestling career began in 1990 with a 4th place at a World Cup tournament in Gothenburg . In 1992, Dennis qualified as the winner of the US Trials for the Olympic Games in Barcelona . In Barcelona, ​​as a newcomer to the international wrestling mat, he did not get his full course and had to be content with 8th place.

Things went much better for him at the 1994 World Cup in Tampere when he was behind Juri Melnichenko from Kazakhstan a . Alexander Ignatenko from Russia took 3rd place in bantamweight. At the 1995 World Cup in Prague , Dennis was able to turn the tables and win the world title in front of these wrestlers. It was the greatest success of his career.

At the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta he faced his old rival Juri Melnichenko in the bantamweight final again. Despite the loud support of the American audience for Dennis Hall, Melnichenko won just about on points and left Dennis only the silver medal.

Dennis Hall also participated in the World Championships in the next few years. In 1997 he reached a reasonable 6th place, but in 1998 and 1999 he was eliminated early and could no longer occupy top positions. In 2000 he could not qualify for the American team for the Olympic Games in Sydney . But he succeeded again in 2004 in the newly created class up to 55 kg body weight. In Athens he won the first fight against Peter Svehla from the Czech Republic , but then retired with a defeat in the 2nd round against Aleksy Wakulenko from Ukraine and finished 14th.

Then Dennis Hall ended his international wrestling career. He founded a company that organizes wrestling camps for young people and clubs, and is particularly involved in youth work. He is also the trainer of Max Emiliano Nowry .

International success

(OS = Olympic Games, WM = World Championship, GR = Greco-Roman style, Fl = flyweight, Ba = bantam weight up to 55/57/58 kg body weight)

• 1990, 4th place , World Cup in Gothenburg , GR, Ba, behind Pierre Dikanda, Sweden , Sergaj Bulanow, USSR u. Amadonys Gonzalez Labrada, Cuba a . before Mohammad Solih, Iran ;
• 1991, 6th place , Junior World Championships, GR, Ba, behind Juri Melnichenko , USSR, Constantin Dodita, Romania , Cho Sang-Sun, Korea , Muharem Guveran, Turkey u. Jerzy Szeibinger, Poland ;
• 1992, 8th place , OS in Barcelona , GR, Ba, winner: An Han-bong , Korea ahead of Rıfat Yıldız , FRG a . Sheng Zetiang , PR China ;
• 1993, 1st place , Grand Prix of Poland in Warsaw , GR, Ba, ahead of Georgi Sakaniec, Belarus , Ralph Zentgraf, FRG a. Stanislaw Pawlowski, Poland;
• 1994, 3rd place , tournament in Concord / USA, GR, Fe, behind Juan Luis Marén , Cuba a. Mxitar Manukian, Armenia a. before Jim Grünwald , USA a. Thierry Gastien, France;
• 1994, 3rd place , World Championships in Tampere , GR, Ba, behind Juri Melnichenko u. Alexander Ignatenko , Russia a . before Mikael Lindgren, Sweden, Şeref Eroğlu , Turkey a. Vilayet Agayev, Azerbaijan ;
• 1995, 1st place , Pan American Games in Mar del Plata , GR, Ba, ahead of William Lara Diaz, Cuba a . Armando Fernandez Garcia, Mexico ;
• 1995, 1st place , World Championships in Prague , GR, Ba, ahead of Juri Melnichenko, Alexander Ignatenko, Dimitris Jioldsian, Greece , Ruslam Schakimow, Ukraine a . To Han-Bong, Korea;
• 1996, silver medal , OS in Atlanta , GR, Ba, behind Juri Melnichenko u. before Sheng Zetiang, Ruslam Schakimow, Rifat Yildiz u. Luis Sarmiento Hernandez, Cuba;
• 1997, 6th place , WM in Breslau , GR, Ba, behind Juri Melnichenko, Rafik Simonjan, Russia, Armen Nazarjan , Bulgaria , Vilayet Agejew u. Aristidis Rubenjan, Greece;
• 1998, 20th place , World Championship in Gävle , GR, Ba, winner: Kim In-Sub , Korea ahead of Sheng Zetiang, Armen Nazarian u. Yuri Melnichenko;
• 1999, 1st place , Pan American Games in Winnipeg , GR, Ba, ahead of Roberto Monzon Gonzalez, Cuba a. Sydney Guzman Villacosta, Peru ;
• 1999, 28th place , World Cup in Athens , GR, Ba, winner: Kim In-Sub ahead of Juri Melnichenko u. Poor Nazarian;
• 2000, 2nd place , Olympic qualification. Tournament in Colorado Springs , GR, Ba, behind Rifat Yildiz u. before Ali Askhani Agboloag, Iran;
• 2000, 1st place , Pan American Championships in Cali , GR, Ba, ahead of Roberto Monzon Gonzalez u. Jairo Alvarado, Venezuela;
• 2004, 1st place , "Nikola-Petrow" tournament in Sofia , GR, Ba, ahead of Alfred Ter-Mkrtchyan , Germany a . Nurbakyt Tengizbajew, Kazakhstan;
• 2004, 14th place , OS in Athens, GR, Ba, winner: István Majoros , Hungary ahead of Gaidar Mamedaliew , Russia a. Artiom Kiourengian , Greece

swell

• various issues of the specialist magazine "Der Ringer" from 1990 to 2004,
• International Wrestling Database of the Institute for Applied Training Science Leipzig

Web links

• Portrait of Dennis Hall (English)