Müzahir Sille
Turkish wrestler and coach (1931–2016)
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Müzahir Sille (21 September 1931 – 17 May 2016) was a Turkish Greco-Roman wrestler and coach. He won the gold medal in the men's Greco-Roman featherweight event at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. He also won silver medals at the 1955 World Wrestling Championships and the 1958 World Wrestling Championships, and finished fourth at the 1956 Summer Olympics.[1][2]
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 21 September 1931 Istanbul, Turkey | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 17 May 2016 (aged 84) Istanbul, Turkey | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 169 cm (5.54 ft; 67 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 63 kg (139 lb; 9.9 st) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Turkey | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Wrestling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event | Greco-Roman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Istanbul Güreş İhtisas Kulübü (1949–1961) KSV Witten 07 (1961–1986) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Career
Sille was born in Istanbul on 21 September 1931. He began wrestling in 1949 at Istanbul Güreş İhtisas Kulübü and trained under Ragıp Hoca, Hüseyin Erkmet, Adnan Yurdaer and Halil Yüceses.[3]
His first major international medals came at the 1955 World Wrestling Championships in Karlsruhe and the 1958 World Wrestling Championships in Budapest, where he won silver in the Greco-Roman featherweight division on both occasions. He also took the bronze medal at the 1959 Balkan Championships in Istanbul.[1][2]
At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Sille finished fourth in the men's Greco-Roman 62 kg event. He defeated the Soviet Union's Roman Dzeneladze by fall in the first round and Australia's Norman Ickeringill by fall in the second round. In the third round he lost on points to Sweden's Gunnar Håkansson, and in the fourth round he was pinned by Hungary's Imre Polyák, which eliminated him from the tournament.[4]
Sille reached the peak of his career at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. In the men's Greco-Roman 62 kg event, he defeated Gottlieb Neumair of the United Team of Germany and Kazimierz Macioch of Poland by decision in the opening two rounds. He then pinned Sweden's Leif Freij in the third round and the United Arab Republic's Moustafa Hamid in the fourth round. In the fifth round he lost on points to Romania's Mihai Șulț, but in the final round he defeated Imre Polyák by decision to win the Olympic gold medal.[5][3]
He also competed at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, where he drew with Denmark's Svend Skrydstrup in the first round and lost by fall to the Soviet Union's Roman Rurua in the second round. He was eliminated with six bad points and did not advance beyond the second round.[6]
In 1961, Sille moved to West Germany and continued his career with KSV Witten 07. With the club, he was part of several German team championship-winning squads. After his wrestling career ended, he returned to Istanbul and became involved in non-profit initiatives, especially projects aimed at helping homeless people. He lived in Istanbul with his wife, Dinani Sille until he died in 2016.[1]
Sille died in Istanbul on 17 May 2016 after treatment for heart failure.[1][7]