George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame

Professional wrestling hall of fame

George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame

Dan Gable Museum
Established	1999
Location	Waterloo, Iowa, U.S.
Director	Kyle Klingman
Website	nwhof.org/pro-class/

The George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame is a professional wrestling hall of fame and museum located within the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum's Dan Gable Museum. The hall of fame honors wrestlers with a strong amateur background who have made an impact on professional wrestling.^[1] It is named after Lou Thesz, who helped create it,^[2] and his trainer George Tragos.^[3]

The hall of fame was founded in 1999 in Newton, Iowa but moved to Waterloo, Iowa in 2007.^[4] The museum suffered severe flooding in the Iowa flood of 2008,^[5] but reopened in June 2009.^[6] Wrestling historian and journalist Mike Chapman served as executive director of the museum until Kyle Klingman succeeded him in November 2009.^[7]

Inductions take place at a hall of fame induction ceremony. Other activities are held throughout the weekend in conjunction with the event, such as local independent promotion Impact Pro Wrestling's "Hall of Fame Classic" tournament in 2017 and 2018.^[8][9]

Honorees

Inductees

1999 inductees Lou Thesz and Ed Lewis

Gene Kiniski, inducted in 2004

Antonio Inoki, inducted in 2005

Bret Hart, inducted in 2006

"Rowdy" Roddy Piper, inducted in 2008

Nick Bockwinkel, inducted in 2009

Terry Funk, inducted in 2010

Kurt Angle, inducted in 2012

"Nature Boy" Ric Flair, inducted in 2013

Two-time honoree Beth Phoenix

Dusty Rhodes, 2017 inductee

Owen Hart, 2018 inductee

Bruno Sammartino, 2019 inductee

Year	Ring name (Birth name)	Notes
1999	Lou Thesz (Aloysius Thesz)	One-time holder of the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (Boston version), two-time World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion, three-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion[10]
1999	Ed "Strangler" Lewis (Robert Friedrich)	Posthumous inductee: Four-time World Heavyweight Champion, two-time holder of the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (Boston version) and one-time NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion[10]
1999	Frank Gotch	Posthumous inductee: One-time World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion and three-time American Heavyweight Champion[10]
1999	George Tragos	Posthumous inductee: Won many amateur titles in Greece and competed for two Olympic teams there, trained Lou Thesz.[10][3]
1999	Verne Gagne	Two-time NCAA champion, member of the U.S. wrestling team at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Co-founder of the American Wrestling Association, 10-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion[10]
2000	Dick Hutton	Three-time NCAA champion, one-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion[10]
2000	Danny Hodge	Seven-time NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion[10]
2000	Joe Stecher	Posthumous inductee: Three-time World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (original version)[10]
2000	Earl Caddock	Posthumous inductee: One-time World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (original version)[10]
2001	William Muldoon	Posthumous inductee: First chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission, one-time World Greco-Roman Heavyweight Champion[10]
2001	Martin "Farmer" Burns	Posthumous inductee: One-time American Heavyweight Champion[10]
2001	Jack Brisco	Two-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, three-time NWA World Tag Team Champion[10]
2001	Tim Woods (George Woodin)	Won two Big Ten Conference Championships in 1958 and 1959. Two-time NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion and one-time NWA Texas Heavyweight Champion[10]
2002	Dick "The Destroyer" Beyer	Three-time WWA World Heavyweight Champion and one-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion[10]
2002	Bob Geigel	Three-time AWA World Tag Team Champion[10]
2002	Baron von Raschke (James Raschke)	Three time WWA World Heavyweight Champion, one-time NWA American Heavyweight Champion, one-time NWA Brass Knuckles Champion (Texas version), one-time NWA Georgia Heavyweight Champion[10]
2002	Ed Don George	Posthumous inductee: Two-time World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion and one-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion (Boston version)[10]
2002	Peter Sauer	Posthumous inductee: One-time NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Champion[10]
2003	Billy Robinson	One-time PWF World Heavyweight Champion, two-time AWA World Tag Team Champion, and three-time AWA British Empire Heavyweight Champion[10]
2003	Maurice "Mad Dog" Vachon	Five-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion[10]
2003	Joe Scarpello	Posthumous inductee: Won several amateur titles before wrestling professionally for the American Wrestling Association[10]
2003	George Hackenschmidt (Georg Hackenschmidt)	Posthumous inductee: One-time European Greco-Roman Heavyweight Champion and first ever World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion[10]
2004	Gene Kiniski	Held the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, NWA World Heavyweight Championship, and WWA World Heavyweight Championship once each.[11][12]
2004	Leroy McGuirk	Posthumous inductee: Three-time NWA World Light Heavyweight Champion, one-time NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion, one-time NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion.[11][12]
2004	Pat O'Connor	Posthumous inductee: One-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, three-time NWA Central States United States Heavyweight Champion, One-time (and inaugural) AWA World Heavyweight Champion, and one-time AWA World Tag Team Champion.[11][12]
2004	Brad Rheingans	Member of the U.S. 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympic teams, won two gold medals in the 1975 and 1979 Pan American Games and a bronze medal in the 1979 World Wrestling Championships. Later wrestled professionally for NJPW, WWF, WCW, and AWA[11][12]
2005	Antonio Inoki	Founder of New Japan Pro-Wrestling, two-time WWWF/WWF World Martial Arts Heavyweight Champion, and one-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion[13]
2005	Harley Race	Eight-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, one-time and first NWA United States Heavyweight Champion, three-time AWA World Tag Team Champion and WWF King of the Ring winner in 1986[13]
2005	Gerald Brisco	Three-time NWA World Tag Team Champion, one-time NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion[13]
2005	Earl McCready	Posthumous inductee: Competed for Canada in the 1928 Summer Olympics before becoming a professional wrestler[13]
2005	Dr. Bill Miller	Posthumous inductee: One-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion[13]
2005	John Pesek	Posthumous inductee: One-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, one-time MWA World Heavyweight Champion[13]
2006	Bret "Hitman" Hart	Five-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion, two-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, was a Triple Crown winner in WWF and WCW.[14]
2006	Larry "The Axe" Hennig	Four-time AWA World Tag Team Champion, one-time IWA World Tag Team Champion[14]
2006	Bob Roop	1967 NCCA Champion. Four-time NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion[14]
2006	Dory Funk	Posthumous inductee: Won the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship and various NWA regional titles.[14]
2006	"Iron" Mike DiBiase	Posthumous inductee: One-time NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion.[14]
2006	Tom Jenkins	Posthumous inductee: Three-time American Heavyweight Champion[14]
2007	Red Bastien (Roland Bastien)	One-time NWA Texas Tag Team Champion[15]
2007	"Dr. Death" Steve Williams	One-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, one-time UWF World Heavyweight Champion[15]
2007	The Great Gama (Ghulam Mohammad Baksh)	Posthumous inductee: Won the Indian version of the World Heavyweight Championship[15]
2007	"Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig	Posthumous inductee: One-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion, two-time WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion, one-time WCW United States Heavyweight Champion, one-time WCW World Tag Team Champion[15]
2007	Dale Lewis	Posthumous inductee: Wrestled in the 1956 and 1960 Olympics. Later held the NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship once.[15]
2007	"The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase	Four-time Mid-South North American Heavyweight Champion and three-time WWF World Tag Team Champion.[15]
2008	Masa Saito	One-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion, two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion[5]
2008	Abe Jacobs	Won several regional championships[5]
2008	Stu Hart	Posthumous inductee: Established Stampede Wrestling in Calgary 1948, and ran it until 1984. Ran "The Dungeon" wrestling school and trained numerous wrestlers. Patriarch of the Hart family[5]
2008	"Rowdy" Roddy Piper (Roderick Toombs)	One-time WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion and three-time NWA/WCW United States Heavyweight Champion[5]
2008	Ray Gunkel	Posthumous inductee: One-time NWA Georgia Heavyweight Champion and three-time NWA Texas Heavyweight Champion[5]
2008	Leo Nomellini	Posthumous inductee: One-time AWA World Tag Team Champion[5]
2009	Nick Bockwinkel	Four-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion and three-time AWA World Tag Team Champion[6]
2009	Karl Gotch (Karl Istaz)	Posthumous inductee: Won the IWA World Heavyweight Championship and WWWF World Tag Team Championship once each[6]
2009	Luther Lindsay	Posthumous inductee: Won the NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Championship, NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship, and the NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship (Calgary version) once each[6]
2009	Bronko Nagurski	Posthumous inductee: Two-time NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship, one-time New York State Athletic Commission World Heavyweight Champion[6]
2009	Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat (Richard Blood)	One-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, three-time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion, and one-time WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion[6]
2009	Fritz Von Goering (John Gabor)	One-time NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Champion[16]
2010	Stanislaus Zbyszko (Jan Stanisław Cyganiewicz)	Posthumous inductee: Two-time World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion[17]
2010	Warren Bockwinkel	Had high-profile feuds in the National Wrestling Alliance[17]
2010	George Gordienko	Posthumous inductee: One-time NWA Pacific Coast Heavyweight Champion (Vancouver version), one-time British Commonwealth Heavyweight Champion (New Zealand version), three-time NWA Canadian Heavyweight Champion (Calgary version).[17]
2010	Paul "Butcher" Vachon	Two-time AWA World Tag Team Champion and three-time NWA International Tag Team Champion (Calgary version)[17]
2010	Terry Funk	One-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, two-time ECW World Heavyweight Champion and one-time WWF Tag Team Champion[17]
2011	Dory Funk Jr.	One-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion[18]
2011	Gorilla Monsoon (Robert "Gino" Marella)	Posthumous inductee: One-time IWA World Heavyweight Champion, and two-time WWC North American Heavyweight Champion[18]
2012	Don "The Buffalo Bomber" Curtis	Posthumous inductee: Won various NWA tag team championships[19]
2012	Kurt Angle	Named the greatest shoot wrestler by USA Wrestling; won the freestyle wrestling gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics. Four-time WWF/WWE Champion, one-time World Heavyweight Champion (WWE), one-time WCW Champion, one-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion (IGF), six-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion[19]
2013	Chris Taylor	Posthumous inductee: Bronze winner in freestyle wrestling at the 1972 Summer Olympics, becoming the heaviest Olympian ever at that point. Later wrestled for the American Wrestling Association[20]
2013	"Nature Boy" Ric Flair (Richard Fliehr)	Two-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion, inaugural and six-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, and eight-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion[20]
2013	"Cowboy" Bill Watts	Former wrestling promoter in the mid-south United States, one-time WWWF United States Tag Team Champion and held over 20 NWA regional championships[20]
2014	Scott Steiner (Scott Rechsteiner)	One-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, two-time WCW United States Heavyweight Champion, two-time WWF Tag Team Champion, two-time TNA Tag Team Champion, two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion and seven-time NWA (Mid-Atlantic version)/WCW Tag Team Champion[21]
2014	Rick Steiner (Robert Rechsteiner)	One-time WCW United States Heavyweight Champion, two-time WWF Tag Team Champion, two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion and eight-time NWA (Mid-Atlantic version)/WCW Tag Team Champion[21]
2014	Wilbur Snyder	Posthumous inductee: Two-time World Heavyweight Champion (Omaha version), two-time AWA World Tag Team Champion[21]
2015	The Great Wojo (Gregory Wojciechowski)	Three-time WWA World Heavyweight Champion (Indianapolis version)[22]
2015	Jim Londos (Christos Theofilou)	Posthumous inductee: One-time World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion[22]
2016	Bob Backlund	Two-time WWWF/WWF (World) Heavyweight Champion and one-time WWF Tag Team Champion[23]
2016	The Iron Sheik (Khosrow Vaziri)	1971 Amateur Athletic Union Greco-Roman wrestling champion and gold medalist. One-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion and one-time WWF Tag Team Champion[23]
2016	Joe Blanchard	Posthumous inductee: One-time NWA Texas Heavyweight Champion. Later founded Southwest Championship Wrestling and served as a figurehead in the American Wrestling Association[23]
2017	"Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff	One-time Memphis Wrestling Southern Heavyweight Champion, three-time NWA (Mid-Atlantic)/WCW World Tag Team Champion, one-time WCW World Television Champion[9]
2017	"The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes (Virgil Runnels Jr.)	Posthumous inductee: Three-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, ten-time NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion, seven-time NWA Southern Heavyweight Champion (Florida version), one-time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion[9]
2018	Owen Hart	Posthumous inductee: one-time USWA Unified World Heavyweight Champion, two-time WWF Intercontinental Champion, four-time WWF World Tag Team Champion, one-time Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Champion, one-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion[24]
2018	Dan Severn	First three-time honoree: previously received the Frank Gotch Award in 2002 and the George Tragos Award in 2012.[24] One-time UFC Superfight Champion and UFC Hall of Famer. Two-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion[10]
2019	Beth Phoenix (Elizabeth Kociański)	Second time honored, previously received the Frank Gotch Award in 2015. First woman inducted in the Hall of Fame. One-time WWE Divas Champion, three-time WWE Women's Champion[25]
2019	Bruno Sammartino	Posthumous inductee: two-time WWWF/WWF (World) Heavyweight Champion and one-time WWF Tag Team Champion[25]
2021[a]	Adnan Al-Kaissie	One time WWWF World Tag Team Champion, one time NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Champion and one time IWA World Heavyweight Champion (Australian version).[26]
2021[a]	Earl Wampler	Posthumous inductee: An influence on Lou Thesz, Wampler wrestled for 40 years and held the NWA Iowa Heavyweight Title[26]
2021	Don Kernodle	Posthumous inductee:Three-time NWA World Tag Team Champion (Mid-Atlantic version)[27]

Frank Gotch Award recipients

Named after hall of fame inductee Frank Gotch, this award honors people in professional wrestling who brought positive recognition to the industry through work outside of it.^[9][10]

Frank Gotch, a 1999 inductee and the namesake of the award

Penny Banner, 2008 Frank Gotch Award recipient and first woman honored

Diamond Dallas Page, 2014 Frank Gotch Award recipient

Year	Ring name (Birth name)	Notes
2000	Bobby Managoff	One-time World Heavyweight Championship (National Wrestling Association)[10]
2001	Tom Drake	Also inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum[10]
2002	Dan Severn	Later received the George Tragos Award in 2012 and inducted into the hall of fame in 2018[10]
2003	Jesse Ventura (James Janos)	One-time AWA World Tag Team Champion. Former commentator in WWF and WCW. 38th Governor of Minnesota.[10]
2004	George Scott	Won several tag team championships with his brother, Sandy. Later served as an executive in WWF and Jim Crockett Promotions[11][12]
2005	Gene LeBell	Martial artist who later promoted NWA Hollywood Wrestling[13]
2006	Nikita Koloff (Nelson Simpson)	One-time NWA National Heavyweight Champion, one-time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion, two-time NWA World Tag Team Champion (Mid-Atlantic Version)[14]
2008	Penny Banner (Mary Ann Kostecki)	One-time AWA World Women's Champion, Commissioner of the Professional Girl Wrestling Association (PGWA) from 1992 to 2008[5]
2009	Ivan Koloff (Oreal Donald Perras)	One-time WWWF World Heavyweight Champion[6]
2010	Mick Foley	Three-time WWF Champion, one-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, eight-time WWF Tag Team Champion, two-time ECW World Tag Team Champion, one-time WCW World Tag Team Champion[17]
2011	"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan	Winner of the first Royal Rumble match in 1988, one-time WCW United States Champion[18]
2012	Road Warrior Animal (Joe Laurinaitis)	Along with his longtime tag team partner, Road Warrior Hawk, they were two-time WWF Tag Team Champions, one-time AWA World Tag Team Champions, and one-time NWA World Tag Team Champions (Mid-Atlantic)[28]
2013	Jim Brunzell	Two-time AWA World Tag Team Champion[20]
2014	"Diamond" Dallas Page	Three-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, two-time WCW United States Heavyweight Champion, one-time WWF Tag Team Champion, one time WWE European Champion and four-time WCW World Tag Team Champion[29]
2015	Beth Phoenix (Elizabeth Kociański)	Later became the first woman inducted into the hall of fame in 2019[22]
2016	Lex Luger (Lawrence Pfohl)	Two-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, five-time NWA/WCW United States Heavyweight Champion[23]
2017	Stan "The Lariat" Hansen	Four-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, four-time PWF World Heavyweight Champion, one-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion, one-time WCW United States Champion[9]
2018	Bruiser Brody (Frank Goodish)	Posthumous honoree: three-time NWA International Heavyweight Champion, four-time NWA American Heavyweight Champion, one-time NWA Central States Heavyweight Champion, one-time NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion, one-time WWA World Heavyweight Champion (Indianapolis version)[24]
2019	Sgt. Slaughter (Robert Rudolph Remus)	One-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion and two-time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion[25]
2021[a]	Mark Henry	One-time World Heavyweight Champion (WWE), one-time ECW World Heavyweight Champion, one-time WWE European Champion[26]

James C. Melby Award recipients

James C. Melby was the first recipient of this award and it was subsequently named after him. It recognizes excellence in professional wrestling writing or historical preservation.^[9][30]

Greg Oliver, 2008 James C. Melby Award recipient

Dave Meltzer, 2016 James C. Melby Award recipient

Year	Ring name (Birth name)	Notes
2006	James C. Melby	Longtime professional wrestling journalist[14]
2007	Mike Chapman	Executive director of the Dan Gable Museum[15]
2008	Greg Oliver	Honored with Steven Johnson. Canadian author and journalist, founded SLAM! Wrestling[5]
2008	Steven Johnson	Honored with Greg Oliver. Has written several books on professional wrestling[5]
2009	Mike Mooneyham	Author and columnist for The Post and Courier[6]
2010	J Michael Kenyon	Wrestling historian and director of the Cauliflower Alley Club[17]
2011	Scott Teal	Owner of Crowbar Press[18]
2012	Bill Apter	Photographer and journalist for several magazines, including Pro Wrestling Illustrated[19]
2013	George Napolitano	Professional wrestling photographer[20]
2014	Larry Matysik	Announcer for Wrestling at the Chase[29]
2015	Wade Keller	Journalist and founder of the Pro Wrestling Torch newsletter[22]
2016	Dave Meltzer	Editor and publisher of Wrestling Observer Newsletter[23]
2017	Scott Williams	Posthumous honoree: Wrestling historian and author[9]
2018	Koji Miyamoto	Japanese wrestling historian and author of 16 books[24]
2019	Brian Shields	Authored several WWE books[25]
2021	Mark James	Historian and author of several books about territorial professional wrestling[31]

Lou Thesz Award recipients

This award recognizes those in the professional wrestling industry who have used their skills in the realm of public service.^[9]

Jim Ross, 2011 Lou Thesz Award recipient

Adam "Edge" Copeland, 2013 Lou Thesz Award recipient

Year	Ring name (Birth name)	Notes
2007	Bill Murdock	Head of Eblen Charities[15][b]
2008	Father Jason Sanderson	Cauliflower Alley Club board member and promoter who held regional championships[5][34]
2009	Bill Kersten	Announcer for Kansas City Wrestling[6]
2010	Rene Goulet (Robert Bédard)	One-time WWWF World Tag Team Champion[17]
2011	Jim Ross	Longtime lead announcer for WWF/E, WCW and other regional promotions; Head of WWF Talent Relations during the Attitude Era, signing many well known wrestlers[18]
2012	John "Bradshaw" Layfield	One-time WWE Champion, three-time WWF Tag Team Champion[19]
2013	Edge (Adam Copeland)	Four-time WWE Champion, a record seven-time World Heavyweight Champion (WWE). He held the WWF/World and WWE Tag Team Championships a combined 14 times, more than any other wrestler[20]
2014	Larry "The Axe" Hennig	Second time honored, previously inducted in 2006[29]
2015	Brian Blair	Two-time NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion[22]
2016	J.J. Dillon (James Morrison)	Long-time manager in the NWA, former WCW onscreen commissioner[23]
2017	Magnum T.A. (Terry Allen)	Two-time Mid-South North American Champion, two-time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion[9]
2018	Booker T (Robert Huffman)	Five-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, one-time World Heavyweight Champion (WWE), a record six-time WCW World Television Champion, a record 11-time WCW World Tag Team Champion (10 of which came with his brother Stevie Ray as Harlem Heat)[24]
2019	Thunderbolt Patterson (Claude Patterson)	One-time CWA World Heavyweight Champion and one-time NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion[25]
2021[a]	Trish Stratus (Patricia Stratigias)	A record seven-time WWF/E Women's Champion[35]

George Tragos Award recipients

This award recognizes wrestlers who have excelled in mixed martial arts.^[9]

Inaugural George Tragos Award recipient Pat Miletich

Three-time honoree Dan Severn

Year	Ring name (Birth name)	Notes
2011	Pat Miletich	Inaugural UFC Welterweight Champion and UFC 16 Welterweight Tournament Winner[18]
2012	Dan Severn	Second time honored, previously received the Frank Gotch Award in 2002[28]
2013	Matt Hughes	Two-time UFC Welterweight Champion, UFC Hall of Fame inductee, and NJCAA Hall of Fame inductee[20]
2014	Randy Couture	Three-time UFC Heavyweight Champion, two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion[29]
2015	Matt Lindland	Won a silver medal in wrestling at the 2000 Summer Olympics and later competed in mixed martial arts for several promotions[22]
2016	Chael Sonnen	Amateur wrestler and mixed martial artist who has competed in UFC, WEC and Pancrase[23]
2017	Mike van Arsdale	Mixed martial artist who has competed in the UFC, World Fighting Alliance, and the IVC[9]
2018	Ben Askren	One-time ONE Welterweight Champion, one-time Bellator Welterweight Champion[24]
2019	Daniel Cormier	One-time UFC Heavyweight Champion and one-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion[25]
2021[a]	Ken Shamrock	Inaugural UFC Superfight Champion. In professional wrestling, he held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, WWF Intercontinental Championship and WWF Tag Team Championship once each.[26]

Gordon Solie Award recipients

This award recognizes excellence in professional wrestling broadcasting.^[27]

Gordon Solie, Inaugural recipient and namesake

Year	Ring name (Birth name)	Notes
2021	Gordon Solie (Francis Labiak)	Posthumous honoree: commentator, announcer and promoter for Championship Wrestling from Florida, later worked for World Championship Wrestling[27]

Notes

1. These honorees were originally announced as being part of the 2020 ceremony but the event was postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[26]
2. In 2019, it was reported that Murdock had been convicted of taking indecent liberties with a child in 1988 and he has since been removed from the Hall of Fame's website.^[32][33]

References

1. Skok, Jason (2013). Kurt Angle: From Olympian to Wrestling Machine. Capstone Press. p. 28. ISBN 978-1429686822.
2. Solomon, Brian (2015). Pro Wrestling FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the World's Most Entertaining Spectacle. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-1617135996.
3. "George Tragos". National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
4. Klingman, Kyle (June 14, 2008). "Iowa wrestling museum flooded". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
5. Klingman, Kyle (June 20, 2008). "Flood won't stop Tragos/Thesz HOF 'Super Weekend'". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
6. Johnson, Mike (June 30, 2009). "Ricky Steamboat, Nick Bockinkel Among 2009 Class Honored By Wrestling Museum & Institute". PWInsider. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
7. "Chapman retires from Dan Gable Museum". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. November 25, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
8. "Big weekend on tap for local wrestling HOF". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. May 22, 2015. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
9. Keller, Wade (June 17, 2017). "Shelton Benjamin part of Impact Pro's Hall of Fame Classic tournament next month, full weekend details & schedule". PWTorch.com. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
10. "Ventura given Museum's top honour". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. August 4, 2003. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
11. Oliver, Greg (July 25, 2004). "Kiniski, Rheingans entering Newton hall". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
12. Curry, Lewis (August 2, 2004). "Newton inducts Class of 2004". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
13. Oliver, Greg (July 10, 2005). "Newton HOF set to grow by six". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
14. "Hall of Fame Inductions Report: Bret Hart, Larrry Hennig, Mike DiBiase, Dory Funk Sr., Bop Roop". PWTorch. July 6, 2006. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
15. Johnson, Steve (July 14, 2007). "Emotions run high at Tragos/Thesz induction". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
16. Vongsarath, Chris (March 2, 2009). "Longtime Campbell resident Fritz von Goering to be inducted into wrestling hall of fame". Mercury News. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
17. Postian, Joyce (July 15, 2010). "Funk, Foley, Vachon among those honored at Tragos/Thesz HOF". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
18. Oliver, Greg (November 15, 2010). "Tragos/Thesz HOF to honour Funk Jr., Monsoon, Ross, Duggan". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
19. Alvarez, Bryan (November 15, 2011). "Tues update: Tons more from Raw, UFC vs. New York notes, more WWE Twitter madness, HDNet signs new MMA deal, MMA legend heading to ROH, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Archived from the original on December 19, 2011. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
20. Caldwell, James (January 22, 2012). "News: Edge to join second Hall of Fame". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
21. Johnson, Vaugn (November 12, 2013). "Steiner Brothers to headline hall of fame induction ceremony". Philly.com. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
22. Namako, Jason (May 22, 2015). "Kurt Angle reception set for 2015 National Pro Wrestling HOF". Wrestleview.com. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
23. Caldwell, James (July 18, 2016). "Stan Hansen added to this week's Tragos/Thesz Hall of Fame, replaces two stars unable to appear". PWTorch.com. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
24. Keller, Wade (March 26, 2018). "National Wrestling Hall of Fame announced Class of 2018, details on HOF Induction Weekend including Ross, Booker T, Animal". PWTorch.com. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
25. Johnson, Mike (May 21, 2019). "2019 Tragos/Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame Class Announced". PWInsider. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
26. Lee, Joseph (July 21, 2020). "Tragos/Thesz Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame Postpones This Year's Ceremony To 2021". 411Mania. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
27. Lee, Joseph (December 31, 2020). "Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame Finalizes 2021 Class: Mark Henry, Trish Stratus, More". 411Mania. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
28. Laprade, Patric (July 10, 2012). "Award honours Dan Severn's MMA successes". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
29. Williams, Kari (July 26, 2014). "Steiners headline Tragos/Thesz induction weekend". Slam! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
30. Nason, Josh (January 5, 2016). "Dave Meltzer to Receive Honor From National Wrestling Hall of Fame". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
31. Mina, Amos (July 6, 2021). "When It Comes to Old-School Wrestling, Mark James Knows His Stuff". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved July 17, 2021.
32. "Dan Gable's Lou Thesz Award". National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
33. Fantz, Ashley (March 22, 2019). "Charity leader retires days after CNN reveals details of sex crime charge". CNN. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
34. "Jason Sanderson". National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
35. Krex, Azxa (January 23, 2020). "Aun retirada, Trish Stratus hace historia en la lucha libre". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). Retrieved January 28, 2020.

External links

• Official website
• Bibliography of reports by Canoe.com