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Verne Gagne

Verne Gagne
Gagne in 1964 as AWA World Heavyweight Champion
Birth nameLaverne Clarence Gagne
Born(1926-02-26)February 26, 1926
Corcoran, Minnesota, U.S.
DiedApril 27, 2015(2015-04-27) (aged 89)
Bloomington, Minnesota, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Minnesota
Children4, including Greg Gagne
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Verne Gagne
Billed height5 ft 11 in (180 cm)[1]
Billed weight215 lb (98 kg)[1]
Trained byJoe Pazandak[2]
Tony Stecher[2]
Debut1949[2]
Retired1981
Military service
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Navy
United States Marine Corps
Years of service1943–1946
UnitUnderwater Demolition Team
Battles/warsWorld War II
Medal record
Collegiate Wrestling
Representing the Minnesota Golden Gophers
NCAA Wrestling Championships
Gold medal – first place 1948 Bethlehem 191 lb
Gold medal – first place 1949 Fort Collins Heavyweight
Bronze medal – third place 1947 Champaign Heavyweight
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Laverne Clarence Gagne[2] (February 26, 1926 – April 27, 2015)[3] was an American amateur and professional wrestler, football player, wrestling trainer and wrestling promoter. He was the owner and promoter of the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling Association (AWA), the predominant promotion throughout the Midwest and Manitoba for many years. He remained in this position until 1991, when the company folded.

As an amateur wrestler, Gagne won two NCAA titles and was an alternate for the U.S. freestyle wrestling team at the 1948 Olympic Games before turning professional in 1949. Gagne was an 11-time world champion in major professional wrestling promotions, having held the AWA World Heavyweight Championship ten times and the IWA World Heavyweight Championship once as the IWA World Heavyweight Championship was considered a world championship in Japan. He has also won top professional wrestling promotions World Heavyweight Championships such as the World Heavyweight Championship (Omaha version) five times. He holds the record for the longest combined reign as a world champion in North America and is third (behind Bruno Sammartino and Lou Thesz) for the longest single world title reign.[a] He is one of only seven men inducted into each of the WWE, WCW and Professional Wrestling halls of fame.

  1. ^ a b "Verne Gagne's Hall of Fame profile". WWE. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference NWA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "He Helped Define Wrestling". Classic Wrestling Articles. April 28, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.


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