| Roles | Non-starter |
|---|---|
| Sex | Male |
| Full name | Laverne Clarence "Verne"•Gagne |
| Used name | Verne•Gagne |
| Born | 26 February 1926 in Corcoran, Minnesota (USA) |
| Died | 27 April 2015 (aged 89 years 2 months 1 day) in Bloomington, Minnesota (USA) |
| NOC |  United States |
Verne Gagne played football and wrestled at the University of Minnesota, winning two NCAA wrestling titles. He was an alternate to the 1948 US Olympic wrestling team although he did not compete in London. After college he was drafted by the Green Bay Packers of the NFL and played several pre-season games with them before leaving football.
Gagne became a professional wrestler in 1949 and was an 11-time world champion, holding the AWA World Heavyweight Championship 10 times and the IWA World Heavyweight Championship once. He was also considered a world champion in Japan. Gagne held the record for the longest combined reign as a world champion in North America. He is a member of the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and Professional Wrestling Halls of Fame.
After his competitive days ended, Gagne owned and promoted the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the foremost professional wrestling troupe in the midwestern USA and Manitoba, Canada, leading the company until 1991, when it folded.
| Games | Discipline (Sport) / Event | NOC / Team | Pos | Medal | As | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 Summer Olympics | Wrestling | USA |
Verne Gagne | |||
| Light-Heavyweight, Freestyle, Men (Olympic) |
