15-and already certain of a Games medal

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33442, 25 January 1974, Page 10

15-and already certain of a Games medal

Of the hundreds of competitors poised to take part in the nine Commonwealth Games sports, only three start with the comfort of knowing they will return home with a medal.

And among this fortunate trio is a silght Australian of German descent whose sixteenth birthday will coincide with the closing ceremony on February 2.

Walter Koenig, in company with Mitchell Kawasaki, of Canada, and an Indian, Radhey Shyam, is entered in the smallest field in any Games event — the three-sided tussle of supremacy in the 48kg (7st 81b) division of the wrestling tournament.

The certainty of a place among the Commonwealth records will be a highlight of what promises to be a very exciting few weeks for the sft 4in Sydney youngster. His trip to Christchurch was his first outside Australia, and immediately after the Games he will fly to Germany to join his parents on holiday in their former country. Koenig “discovered” the basic fundamentals of wrestling by accident. As a nine-year-old he worked out in somewhat primitive style with other members of his junior Rugby league team and he enjoyed this part of football training so much that he decided to divert his sporting energies towards wrestling.