WRESTLING

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 89, 16 April 1938, Page 14

WRESTLING

WANGANUI OPENING BOUT BLOMFIELD a JENSEN Nothing could give the 1938 wrestling season a more enthusiastic senclofi‘ in Wanganui than the fact that "Lofty'’ Blomfield, the Dominion champion and outstanding attraction, ) is to be one of the participants in the | opening professional bout, which is to ’ take place on Tuesday next. Blom- ! hold's opponent will be Leo Jensen, I the stocky Danish-Canadian, who I drew with Joe Tonti and beat Al Baf- I fert in his first two engagements in ■ this country. It is sate to say that j the activities of no New Zealand athlete have attracted as much interest! in the last few years as attended the | tour of Canada and the United States! which Blomfield has just completed.j Immediately after his success in win-! ning the New Zealand championship! tournament last year and holding) Ear! McCready to a draw in a tilt at j the latter’s title, he went to America for tha purpose of having his promised contest with the world champion, Bronko Nagurski. While waiting for that fixture he was kept busily engaged against the best opposition available in North America and acquitted himself so well that, even after his bout with Nagurski, he still had an unbeaten record. Jensen, who is a particularly stalwart specimen, is sft. 9in. in height, weighs over 15 stone, and is noted for his speed, strength, and versatility. He is acquainted with both the Greco-Roman and catch-as-catch-can styles and, as an amateur, was the cruiserweight champion of British Columbia. Since he turned professional about five years ago he has had over 700 matches, with an unusually high percentage of wins. Two years ago he went on a tour which took him to South Africa, France, and England and he returned home undefeated. There will also be first-class amateur preliminaries. BLOMFIELD RETURNS ( Per Press Association. ] AUCKLAND, April 14. Declaring himself to be as “fit as a fiddle” and glad to be home again, “Lofty” Blomfield, the New Zealand wrestling champion, returned by the Mariposa to-day accompanied by his wife. He had given of his best in America, he said, and was confident that had the points been counted he would have now held the championship of the world. The match with Nagurski was put off three times before they finally met and then he found that a college friend of Nagurski had been imported as referee. He had 63 matches in the United States and lost only one—against a Mexican, El Pulpo, through disqualification. Blomfield was later entertained by the Auckland Wrestling Association at a luncheon.