Jeff Blatnick
| Jeff Blatnick | |
|---|---|
| Weight | +100 kg |
| State championships | 1 |
| College | Springfield College |
| Olympic team | United States |
| Olympic medal | Gold |
| Status | Retired |
| Olympic medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Greco-Roman wrestling | ||
| Gold | 1984 Los Angeles | Super Heavy Weight |
Jeff Blatnick (born July 26, 1957) is a former American Super Heavyweight Greco-Roman wrestler and sports commentator. He won NCAA Division II heavyweight wrestling championships in 1978 and 1979 and an Olympic gold in 1984. As a commentator, Blatnick worked UFC 4 through UFC 32 for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.[1] He was born in Niskayuna, New York.
[edit] Wrestling
Blatnick began his career wrestling in 1973 at Niskayuna High School in Niskayuna, New York. While wrestling for Niskayuna, Blatnick became the state heavyweight champion in 1975.[1] After graduating from Niskayuna, he attended and wrestled for Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts. After winning national titles in NCAA Division II, he qualified for the 1980 Olympic team which boycotted the games. In the summers of 1980-81 he worked as a bouncer at the Thirsty Whale in Minocqua, WI. In 1982, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, prompting the removal of his spleen and appendix.
After radiation therapy helped to hold the cancer in remission, Blatnick competed in and won a gold medal in the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, California. He and his teammate, Steve Fraser, were the first Americans to ever win gold in Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling history. Blatnick retired from wrestling after a second round with cancer, which required chemotherapy. He served as a television commentator during the 1988 Summer Olympics.
[edit] Mixed martial arts
From 1994 to 2001 for UFC 4 to UFC 32, Blatnick served as a commentator for the Ultimate Fighting Championship,[1] and was officially named as the commissioner of the UFC during UFC 17. During this time he was involved in the development of the modern rules of the sport.[1] Jeff authored the Mixed Martial Arts Council Manual. Jeff is licensed as a referee and judges with the New Jersey commission.
At present, Jeff Blatnick is a varsity wrestling coach at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School where the head coach is Steve Jones. and also works as a motivational speaker. He resides with his wife, son, and daughter in Clifton Park, New York.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c SLATTERY, HOLDEN (October 23, 2008). "Speaker tells Homer students to keep improving". Cortland Standard. http://cortlandstandard.net/articles/10232008n.html. Retrieved 2008-11-18.
- Blatnick's bio at Hickok Sports
- National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum entry
- BloodyElbow.com
- ZimBio.com
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- 1957 births
- Cancer survivors
- Living people
- American motivational speakers
- American sport wrestlers
- Olympic wrestlers of the United States
- People from Schenectady, New York
- Wrestlers at the 1984 Summer Olympics
- Mixed martial arts broadcasters
- American people of Slovenian descent
- Springfield College (Massachusetts) alumni
- Olympic medalists in wrestling
- American Olympic medalist stubs
- American sport wrestler stubs
