rashka
08-25-2012, 03:47 PM
Antonio Barichievich (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Antonio), known as the Great Antonio (October 10, 1925 - September 7, 2003), was a Croatian-Canadian strongman and eccentric.
Early life
He was born Anton Baričević in Zagreb, Croatia. He is claimed to have gone to work with a pick and shovel at the age of 6 and to have been able to uproot trees with a cable around his neck by age 12 (an anecdote that is not confirmed). In 1945, he arrived in Canada by refugee ship to Halifax, Nova Scotia. He never talked about his experiences in World War II, but some believe that he was psychologically affected by whatever he saw and experienced.
Strongman competition
Beginning in the late 1940s, Barichievich began a career as a strongman. He first made it into the Guinness Book of World Records in 1952 by pulling a 433-tonne train 19.8 metres. He later made it into Guinness by pulling four city buses loaded with passengers. He weighed 465 pounds (224.5 kg) and stood about 6 foot 4 inches (1.93 m). His suits were size 90 and his shoes size 28. He could eat 25 chickens or 10 steaks at one sitting. During the 1970s he toured the world as a strongman and performer, appearing in world capitals and on popular TV variety shows.
Despite his imposing stature, Barichievich is said to have sung with a soft, beautiful voice, and at one time wanted to tour with Tiny Tim.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he made increasingly eccentric demands: he said he would pull a Boeing 747 down the tarmac provided Boeing gave him a jet for his own personal use, and he approached Don King saying that he would do a fight film for one million dollars.
http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/48653_100001490965904_7457_n.jpg
http://media.canald.com/base/photo/0049/ep500274017.id49612.bio_grandantonio1.jpg
http://www.tagtele.com/img/videos/thumbs192x108/70295_default.jpg?20110425205706
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a1/Great_Antonio.jpg
http://u1.ipernity.com/18/36/37/10683637.878a6544.560.jpg
http://farm1.staticflickr.com/3/6924763_77f99cbe6d.jpg
http://sylvaincousineau.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/Le-Grand-Antonio-2.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c122/EastCoastJ/Greatsolo.jpg
http://www.lessignets.com/signetsdiane/calendrier/images/oct/10/antonio1202028.jpg
Video of the Great Antonio Vs Antonio Inoki
9lXAGZtMxU8
Early life
He was born Anton Baričević in Zagreb, Croatia. He is claimed to have gone to work with a pick and shovel at the age of 6 and to have been able to uproot trees with a cable around his neck by age 12 (an anecdote that is not confirmed). In 1945, he arrived in Canada by refugee ship to Halifax, Nova Scotia. He never talked about his experiences in World War II, but some believe that he was psychologically affected by whatever he saw and experienced.
Strongman competition
Beginning in the late 1940s, Barichievich began a career as a strongman. He first made it into the Guinness Book of World Records in 1952 by pulling a 433-tonne train 19.8 metres. He later made it into Guinness by pulling four city buses loaded with passengers. He weighed 465 pounds (224.5 kg) and stood about 6 foot 4 inches (1.93 m). His suits were size 90 and his shoes size 28. He could eat 25 chickens or 10 steaks at one sitting. During the 1970s he toured the world as a strongman and performer, appearing in world capitals and on popular TV variety shows.
Despite his imposing stature, Barichievich is said to have sung with a soft, beautiful voice, and at one time wanted to tour with Tiny Tim.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he made increasingly eccentric demands: he said he would pull a Boeing 747 down the tarmac provided Boeing gave him a jet for his own personal use, and he approached Don King saying that he would do a fight film for one million dollars.
http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/48653_100001490965904_7457_n.jpg
http://media.canald.com/base/photo/0049/ep500274017.id49612.bio_grandantonio1.jpg
http://www.tagtele.com/img/videos/thumbs192x108/70295_default.jpg?20110425205706
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a1/Great_Antonio.jpg
http://u1.ipernity.com/18/36/37/10683637.878a6544.560.jpg
http://farm1.staticflickr.com/3/6924763_77f99cbe6d.jpg
http://sylvaincousineau.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/Le-Grand-Antonio-2.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c122/EastCoastJ/Greatsolo.jpg
http://www.lessignets.com/signetsdiane/calendrier/images/oct/10/antonio1202028.jpg
Video of the Great Antonio Vs Antonio Inoki
9lXAGZtMxU8