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Matt Ghaffari

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Matt Ghaffari
Born
Siamak Ghaffari

(1961-11-11) November 11, 1961 (age 62)
Tehran, Imperial State of Iran
Alma materCleveland State University
Years active1984–2000
2002–2004
Height1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Sports career
CountryUnited States
SportAmateur wrestling
EventGreco-Roman
University teamCleveland State Vikings (1981–84)
Fairleigh Dickinson Knights (1979–80)
ClubSunkist Kids
Martial arts career
DivisionHeavyweight
Mixed martial arts record
Total1
Wins0
Losses1
By knockout1
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Medal record
Men's Greco-Roman Wrestling
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1996 Atlanta 130 kg
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 1991 Varna 130 kg
Silver medal – second place 1998 Gävle 130 kg
Bronze medal – third place 1995 Prague 130 kg
World Cup
Gold medal – first place Gothenburg 1990 130 kg
Gold medal – first place Thessaloniki 1991 130 kg
Bronze medal – third place Heinola 1993 130 kg
Gold medal – first place Kecskemét 1994 130 kg
Gold medal – first place Schifferstadt 1995 130 kg
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 1991 Havana 130 kg
Gold medal – first place 1995 Mar del Plata 130 kg
Pan American Championships
Gold medal – first place 1984 Mexico City 130 kg
Gold medal – first place 1989 Colorado Springs 130 kg
Gold medal – first place 1990 Colorado Springs 130 kg
Gold medal – first place 1992 Albany 130 kg
Gold medal – first place 1994 Mexico City 130 kg
Aleksandr Karelin Cup
Silver medal – second place Novosibirsk 1995 130 kg
Grand Masters of Olympic Wrestling
Silver medal – second place Pittsburgh 1990 130 kg
Men's Freestyle Wrestling
Representing the  United States
Pan American Championships
Gold medal – first place 1990 Colorado Springs 130 kg
Gold medal – first place 1992 Albany 130 kg

Siamak "Matt" Ghaffari (/ɡəˈfɑːri/ gə-FAR-ee;[1] Persian: سیامک غفاری, Persian pronunciation: [siːɒːmæk-e ɢæˈffɒːɾiː]; born November 11, 1961, in Tehran, Imperial State of Iran) is an Iranian-born American Greco-Roman wrestler, MMA Fighter and professional wrestler. Ghaffari was a two-time USA Olympic team member, obtaining a silver medal at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympic Games. Ghaffari finished his career with the most Greco-Roman World and Olympic medals by a United States wrestler. Ghaffari is considered the greatest Greco-Roman wrestler in American history,[2] and is regarded as the standard for Greco-Roman wrestling in the United States.[3]

In all, he won six national championships,[4] four World Cups, two Pan-American Games, seven Pan-American championships (including titles in 1990 and 1992 in freestyle wrestling), and 13 Grand Prix tournament titles.[1][5] He further represented his adopted country six times in World Championships and was twice named the United States Olympic Committee Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year, in 1996 and 1998.[6]

Early life

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Born in Tehran, Iran, Ghaffari came to the United States at a young age, he attended Paramus High School in Paramus, New Jersey.[7]

Greco-Roman wrestling career

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He was runner-up to Aleksandr Karelin at the 1995 Karelin Cup.[8] While representing the United States at the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympic Games and 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympic Games, Ghaffari reached the final of the heavyweight Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg division at the latter, where he lost 0–1 to Russian overwhelming favorite Aleksandr Karelin in overtime.[7] Ghaffari was a six-time United States wrestling champion and a two-time USA Olympic Committee Greco-Roman Athlete of the Year, in 1996 and 1998.[3] Ghaffari ended with a 0–23 record against Karelin.[9][10]

Ghaffari is currently the only American to win a combined four World and Olympic medals in Greco-Roman. Also, he holds 3 American Records the Most World and Olympic total medals, plus he was 4-time World Cup Champion, also 9-time Pan-American Champion. Ghaffari is the 2-time US Olympian and 2-time US Olympic team alternate.  

In 2013, Ghaffari was inducted in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member.[11]

Mixed martial arts career

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In 2002, Ghaffari fought in the Tokyo Dome in front of 28,000 spectators at a mixed martial arts bout in UFO- Universal Fighting-Arts Organization against judo Olympic Silver Medalist Naoya Ogawa. Ghaffari managed to take Ogawa down and attack him with a brief ground and pound, but back to standing, Ogawa landed a punch which shifted Matt's left eye contact lens and forced him to quit.[12]

Mixed martial arts record

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Professional record breakdown
1 match 0 wins 1 loss
By knockout 0 0
By submission 0 0
By decision 0 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 0–1 Japan Naoya Ogawa TKO (punch) UFO Legend August 8, 2002 1 0:56 Tokyo, Japan

Professional wrestling career

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Matt Ghaffari
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Matt Ghaffari[13]
Billed height6 ft 5 in (196 cm)[13]
Billed weight280 lb (130 kg)[13]
Debut8 December 2002[13]

In 1996, Ghaffari was scouted by professional wrestling promotion World Championship Wrestling and was featured in several vignettes, but did not sign up with the company.[14]

After his stint in MMA, Ghaffari started to work in the Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE, where he won the NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship with Tom Howard on December 15, 2002, by defeating Shinya Hashimoto and old opponent Naoya Ogawa.[15] They held the championship until April 29, 2003, when they lost it to Hashimoto and Ogawa.[15]

In 2004, Ghaffari made an appearance for HUSTLE, pinning Ogawa after a beatdown from the heel faction Monster Army (Mark Coleman, Kevin Randleman, Dusty Rhodes Jr., Giant Silva and Dan Bobish).[16]

Championships and accomplishments

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Matt Ghaffari". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  2. ^ Ford, Bob (June 23, 2000). "Avon Lake's Ghaffari wins first match in Olympic wrestling trials". Morning Journal. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Matt Ghaffari". nwhof.org. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  4. ^ Ford, Bob (June 23, 2000). "Avon Lake's Ghaffari wins first match in Olympic wrestling trials". Morning Journal. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  5. ^ Klingman, Kyle (September 10, 2020). "10 U.S. World medalists who deserve a closer look". Trackwrestling. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  6. ^ "Ghaffari, Matt". Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame. November 23, 2009. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Robbins, Liz. "OLYMPICS; Wrestler Two Victories From Dream", The New York Times, June 24, 2000. Accessed October 17, 2007. "To advance, Ghaffari had to pull out a trick he first used two decades ago at Paramus High School in New Jersey.... At 38, and a loss away from retirement, Ghaffari is still crafty and accomplished, compiling more Olympic and world championship medals than any other Greco-Roman wrestler with four."
  8. ^ "Matt Ghaffari". www.washingtonpost.com. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
  9. ^ Romano, John (June 22, 2000). "PAYING THE PRICE". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  10. ^ "Fall of a Giant". cornellsun.com. September 29, 2000. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  11. ^ Matt Ghaffari. National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  12. ^ Hawaii Martial Arts News & Rumors – August News Part 2
  13. ^ a b c d "Matt Ghaffari". wrestlingdata.com. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  14. ^ Dimitri Groell, Jan Niedbala, La face cachée du catch: Ring, Coulisses & Business
  15. ^ a b c "NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Champions". Pro Wrestling ZERO-1. Archived from the original on July 28, 2013. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  16. ^ "HUSTLE Results: 2004" (in German). PuroLove.com. Retrieved October 12, 2014.
  17. ^ "NWA ZERO-ONE O-300 Super Heavyweight Champions". cagematch.net. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
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