Today we’re diving into the legend of Carl Abs, the ‘Father of German Wrestling’. Abs was a powerhouse athlete that broke multiple weightlifting records. He was a strongman and circus performer too. He was the first German to jerk 330 pounds way back in 1885.
From Carpenter to Circus Star
Karl Johann Theodor Abs was born on September 12th, 1851 in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. His father was a carpenter and trained young Karl to follow in his footsteps and become a skilled tradesman.
But Karl preferred farming to framing so he pursued his passion of working the land.
From farming, Carl joined the military as a conscript and served for a year. After being discharged from the service, he found employment doing various jobs. He moved from factory work to serving at a wine shop and even working as a coach driver. He was a capable man and did multiple jobs to bring home the bacon until he found his true calling.
Raising Hell in the Wrestling Ring
In 1880 Carl Abs got hooked on wrestling – back then, wrestling was just a circus sideshow attraction. He also trained in gymnastics to improve his overall athleticism.
In 1881, he took the plunge into professional wrestling, crushing some well-known opponents in exhibition matches. He then opened up his own gym in the basement of a local art school to have a home base to train and to bring physical culture to the masses.
His skills and strength didn’t go unnoticed, and he soon teamed up with circus ringmaster Renz, touring Germany and showing off his feats of strength and wrestling skills. He started gaining popularity very quickly doing exhibition matches at circuses all over Germany.
Eventually, he even took his wrestling talents to the US. There, he clashed with big names like William Muldoon, an American wrestling legend. Some other big names he beat in the ring include the wrestling favorite, Edwin Bibby from England, and Sorakichi Matsuda, a Japanese wrestling champion.
The Rise of German Wrestling
In 1885, things really blew up for Carl Abs. He started touring Germany with Circus Blumenthal, and they brought professional wrestling to towns all across the country.
During his American tour he learned all about promoting and managing wrestling events. And when he got back to Germany he put that knowledge to good use while still touring with different circus troupes.
Dominating the Ring and the Gym
In 1891, Carl Abs showed everyone what he was made of – he won the European Greco-Roman Heavyweight Championship by taking down Tom Cannon, a British and World heavyweight champion.
But wrestling wasn’t Karl Abs only domain – He was also a heavyweight weightlifter and even broke a few weightlifting records.
At the age of 43 he smashed the German record for continental and jerk, lifting a whopping 330 lbs.
Karl Abs’ Training Routine
It’s clear that Karl Abs knew how to train for peak performance. He mixed gymnastic exercises with weight and dumbbell training, following the teachings of Otto Heinrich Jaeger, a famous physical educator and philosopher.
Another guy who influenced Carl’s training was Hermann Altrock, a Professor of Physical Education at Leipzig University. Altrock’s books and training manuals played a big role in shaping wrestling training in those times.
Karl Abs, ‘The German Oak’
Carl Abs stood at 6’2″ tall and weighed 225 pounds of pure muscle at his peak in 1880. This is a very large man even by today’s standards. He tested his strength in jaw-dropping stage performances, like breaking tree trunks, lifting live elephants, and even twisting horseshoes with his bare hands.
As a strongman Carl Abs worked with several noteworthy circus groups. In the late 1880s, he was a regular feature attraction at the famous Cirque d‘Hiver (Winter Circus) in Paris, France. One of his signature shows was to carry a fully-grown horse tied in a harness.
He earned his nickname ‘The German Oak’ and the name stuck.
The Legend Lives On
Carl Abs fought his last wrestling match in 1894 and decided to focus more on weightlifting. He died of typhoid fever when he was just 44 years.
Apart from being a pioneer in German professional wrestling and setting weightlifting records, Carl Abs is touted as one of the most influential figures in promoting bodybuilding in its infancy stage during the bronze age. He brought awareness to the aesthetics of training to have a better-looking and healthier body.
He was featured in books and records. For instance, In 1891 he was featured in a book that described him as a ‘Champion of the Poor.’ The book, titled Carl Abs, der Meisterschafts-Ringer der Welt: Sein Leben u. Wirken (“Carl Abs, the wrestling Champion of the world: his life and work”), detailed his life as a championship wrestler.
He also is featured on page 202 of Edmond Desbonnet’s book, The Kings of Strength: A History of All Strong Men from Ancient Times to Our Own. The book, published in 1911, records the lives and achievements of around 200 strongmen and strongwomen of the bronze era.
In 2008, a youth volunteer organization called Project Diversity started awarding the Carl Abs Cup to outstanding teenagers. In 2002, the county of Groß Godems in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany named a street in honor of Carl Abs.
Conclusion and Legacy
That’s the incredible story of Carl Abs, the “German Oak” who brought professional wrestling to Germany, conquered the ring, and set records as a weightlifting strongman. He paved the way for other greats like George Hackenschmidt to make a name for themselves in the wrestling arena.
His passion for strength and fitness inspired generations to come. More than one hundred years have passed, and we still remember the legendary wrestling and bodybuilding pioneer.
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