Olympic wrestling champion Nikolai Balboshin recalls his legendary grip strength

Five-time world champion and 1976 Olympic gold medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling Nikolai Balboshin shared stories about his extraordinary grip strength in an interview. He described how he could gauge opponents' strength through handshakes before matches, and would deliberately squeeze their forearms during bouts until the arms would swell. Balboshin recalled a training incident where he squeezed an opponent's arm so hard the wrestler collapsed and couldn't continue with three minutes remaining. He also broke a dynamometer at a medical dispensary after exceeding its 120-unit maximum capacity. In his autobiography, he recounts making a trainer's fingers appear flattened during a prolonged grip contest and causing the King of Sweden's hand to crackle during an awards ceremony at the 1977 World Championships.