Fred Oberlander Explained

Fred Oberlander (23 May 1911 – 6 July 1996)[1] was an Austrian, British, and Canadian wrestler. He was born in Vienna, Austria. He won the World Championships in 1935. Oberlander was offered a chance to compete for Austria at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Nazi Germany, but declined. He represented Great Britain as team captain at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Oberlander later emigrated to Canada, where he founded the Canadian Maccabi Association. He won a silver medal in wrestling at the 1950 Maccabiah Games, and the heavyweight wrestling title at the 1953 Maccabiah Games and was named Outstanding Jewish World Athlete.

He fought in Cornish wrestling tournaments in the 1940s.[2]

Hall of Fame

Oberlander was named to the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1991.[3]

Family

His son Ron served as president and CEO of Abitibi Consolidated. His son Philip followed in his father's footsteps, wrestling as a welterweight in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, but did not win a medal.

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: Oberlander, Fred B.. Montreal Gazette. Postmedia Network. 7. 8 July 1996. Newspapers.com. 13 January 2019.
  2. Cornish young wrestlers, Cornish Guardian, 5 September 1946, p5.
  3. Web site: Fred Oberlander. International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. 10 October 2015.