10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (Feb 8)

5. Rusev's Childhood Tale

Rusev Mexico
Adidas/WWE

If one was asked to pick a word which best-describes Rusev, it wouldn't be "soft" or "sick". As Rusev revealed on Lilian Garcia's 'Chasing Glory' show though, that's exactly how his childhood doctor described the future WWE star. When he was a young kid, Ru-Ru had "crooked legs", was "fat" and needed to "toughen up".

It's a wonder he didn't shout, "Rusev...Crush" and put ol' doc in the Accolade.

Seriously, there's a tinge of sadness to Rusev's tale. He was a sickly, overweight boy who didn't start shedding his puppy fat until he began playing football (soccer, not American). Once he did, his body embraced the exercise and he became barrel-chested rather than barrel-bellied.

That journey wasn't without setback. After football and basketball, Rusev tried his hand at wrestling only to find older guys who wanted to use him as a human punching bag. Remarkably, he nearly quit on several occasions.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.