Takedown Report

10 Stats That Make Lee Kemp A Wrestling Icon

Lee Kemp is a groundbreaking wrestler in the United States. Here are 10 reasons why.
Lee Kemp remains one of the most important and transformative wrestlers in American history. Here are 10 stats that prove it. 

From Worst To First

Kemp wasn’t the worst when he began his wrestling career as a high school freshman, but he wasn’t a transcendent star, either. The Chardon, Ohio, native was 14-2 on the freshman team (1970-71) and 11-8-3 on varsity as a sophomore (1971-72).
Then he took off. 
He went undefeated the next two seasons and reached the 1975 NCAA Championship finals for Wisconsin as a true freshman, then won three straight (1976-78). 
That means he went from a barely .500 varsity wrestler as a sophomore in high school (1972) to the 1975 NCAA finals in three years. 

No One Is Safe

Take what we learned above and apply it to the 1975 Northern Open, one of the premier college tournaments at the time. Dan Gable entered the 158-pound bracket as the greatest American wrestler up to that point. He won the 1972 Munich Olympics without surrendering a point and was an assistant at the University of Iowa. 
Gable hadn’t wrestled a competitive match in nearly three years when he entered, and Kemp hadn’t won his first NCAA title when they met in the finals. … more at … https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/16150177-10-stats-that-make-lee-kemp-a-wrestling-icon?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

October 4, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | Leave a comment