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Back in the 1960s there were quite a few young wrestlers who the fans always enjoyed, seemed destined for the very top, but never quite made it to the big league. Sometimes the reason for the lack of push they received from promoters was hard to understand, and Rotherham’s Colin Williamson is an example of this untapped talent. He was young, good looking, had bags of skill, was very strong, and was liked by the fans. Colin also had a determination to succeed, and faced up to any challenges that might come his way.
He was one of the handful of wrestlers whose deafness prevented him from hearing the cheers of the crowd. The crowd did cheer him enthusiastically as they appreciated the sportsmanship and skill displayed in each contest. Standing a shade over six feet tall Colin was a very powerful man. A long held interest in weight lifting ensured his 17 stone frame consisted almost entirely of muscle. Born in 1940 Colin’s childhood was in the austere post war years when times were hard.
Deaf from childhood Colin learned the skill of lip reading before going to school. Whilst a teenager he became interested in wrestling and soon after leaving school began making regular journeys from his home in Rotherham to an amateur wrestling club in Bradford. It was here that he met the Welsh rugby player and pro wrestler Sandy Orford, and Sandy’s son, Tony.
Fortunately Sandy spotted potential in the teenager, and when Colin had completed a thorough amateur schooling Sandy went on to teach him the very different ways of the professional ring. Colin was a good pupil and made his professional debut, against Gorilla Don Mendoza, early in 1960. It was something of a whirlwind start for the young Yorkshireman. Within that first year promoters matched him with rough and tough Bill Rawlings, American Texas Bill Cody, the great Bob McDonald, Iron Man Steve Logan, British champion Billy Joyce, and he even made a short visit to Hamburg. He fared well against the established stars and in the years that followed Colin wrestled most of the big names in wrestling.
Most of his contests were in the north of England, but he made fairly regular visits to Scotland and ventured to the deep south on occasions. In the mid 1960s he transferred to the independents and worked for Paul Lincoln amongst others.There are many mysteries in wrestling, and one of them for us is why Colin was not propelled to a greater status in the mid sixties. Sadly our story ends tragically as Colin died on 27th July, 1971, aged just 31 years of age. We thank Colin’s niece, Heritage member Mandy, for her help in celebrating the career of Colin Williamson.
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