Momir Petković ( sr-cyrl, Момир Петковић; born 21 July 1953) is a

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

wrestling champion.

Wrestling career

Momir Petković was a 1976 Olympic gold medalist in

Greco-Roman wrestling Greco-Roman (American English), Graeco-Roman (British English), or classic wrestling (Euro-English) is a style of wrestling that is practiced worldwide. Greco-Roman wrestling was included in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been i ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, competing for the former

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

at 82 kg. He also claimed three World silver medals (1978, 1979, 1981) and a World bronze medal (1977) during his career. Petkovic placed fourth in the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Calif. Momir was revered for his majestic mustache which gave him great power. His competitive international Greco-Roman career spanned from 1970–1984

As a coach

Petković joined

USA Wrestling USA Wrestling (formerly known as the United States Wrestling Federation and as the United States Wrestling Association) is the organization that currently governs freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling in the United States. USA Wrestling ...

as its Assistant National Greco-Roman Coach in May 2002. He assists in the training and recruitment of athletes for the U.S. Olympic Training Center resident athlete program. He also works on a variety of Greco-Roman National Team projects. He was a member of the 2000 U.S. Greco-Roman Olympic Team coaching staff, as well as the 2001 U.S. Greco-Roman World Team Coaching staff. The United States placed a strong third at both competitions, among what is considered the best Greco-Roman team performances in U.S. history. He has on occasion trained

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

fighters the likes of

Matt Lindland Matthew James Lindland (born May 17, 1970), is an American retired mixed martial artist, Olympic wrestler, speaker, actor, coach, entrepreneur, and politician. He won the Oregon Republican Party's nomination for the Oregon House of Representati ...

and B.J. Penn. BJ credited Momir with helping him defeat Matt Hughes at

UFC 46 ''UFC 46: Supernatural'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on January 31, 2004, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event was broadcast live on pay-per-view in the United States, and ...

for the UFC Welterweight Championship. ''"Momir is the toughest man I have ever met, what a great coach and role model"'' -

External links

Momir Perkovic at Olympics DataBase

{{DEFAULTSORT:Petkovic, Momir Serbian male sport wrestlers Wrestlers at the 1976 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 1984 Summer Olympics Yugoslav male sport wrestlers Olympic wrestlers for Yugoslavia Olympic gold medalists for Yugoslavia 1953 births Living people Olympic medalists in wrestling Sportspeople from Subotica World Wrestling Championships medalists Medalists at the 1976 Summer Olympics