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Aleksandr Karelin
Aleksandr Karelin won Olympic gold in Greco-Roman wrestling at three consecutive Olympics between 1988 and 1996, and he went 13 years without losing a single match at any level of international competition, a streak so dominant that opponents openly discussed the psychological difficulty of even attempting to score a single point against him. Nicknamed "the Russian Bear" and "Alexander the Great" by wrestling media, Karelin's signature "reverse body lift," in which he would lift opponents nearly his own massive size completely off the mat and throw them backward, became one of the most feared individual techniques in the sport's history. His shocking 2000 Sydney Olympics final loss, in which American wrestler Rulon Gardner defeated Karelin to end his 13-year unbeaten streak, is widely regarded as one of the greatest upsets in Olympic wrestling history, given Karelin's near-total dominance across the preceding decade. Karelin's combined three Olympic golds and his 13-year unbeaten international streak have made him the individual most consistently cited as the greatest Greco-Roman wrestler in history, and his eventual defeat remains one of the most celebrated upsets in the sport's Olympic history.
VS
Dan Gable
Dan Gable won Olympic gold in freestyle wrestling at the 1972 Munich Olympics without surrendering a single point across the entire tournament, a level of dominance so complete that it remains one of the most frequently cited individual performances in Olympic wrestling history. His collegiate wrestling record at Iowa State University included 181 consecutive wins, and his only college loss, in his final collegiate match, is still remembered as one of the most shocking upsets in NCAA wrestling history precisely because of how thoroughly dominant Gable had been up to that point. After his competitive career, Gable became head coach at the University of Iowa, building the program into one of the most dominant dynasties in college sports history, winning 15 NCAA team championships across 21 seasons and establishing Iowa as the standard-bearer for American collegiate wrestling. His combination of a nearly flawless competitive record and his subsequent transformation of Iowa into college wrestling's most dominant program has made Gable one of the most significant figures in the entire history of American wrestling, at both the Olympic and collegiate levels.
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