Nikolai Balboshin, a 1976 Olympic champion and five-time world champion in Greco-Roman wrestling, discussed his extraordinary grip strength in an interview. Balboshin explained that he could squeeze opponents' forearms so hard during matches that their arms would swell, as blood circulation stopped. He recounted breaking a dynamometer during a medical examination when he exceeded its 120-unit maximum capacity. Perhaps most remarkably, Balboshin described shaking hands with the King of Sweden during a 1977 world championship medal ceremony, intentionally squeezing hard enough that he heard the king's fingers crunch, ensuring the monarch would remember him. Balboshin also shared that he could determine an opponent's strength by their handshake before matches, using the grip assessment to gauge the difficulty of upcoming bouts.
