I am an entertainer, says world wrestling champ Kurt Angle

Mumbai: Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion Kurt Angle, who has the record of beating the best of professional wrestlers, said he was "not born to be a wrestler but an entertainer".

The US amateur wrestler, who entered the entertainment arena in 1998 after signing a contract with the World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment), won the world championship title in just 10 months -- the fastest to achieve this feat.

"I started my career in pro-wrestling with WWE and 10 months later I was the world champion. It went very quick. I didn't know I was born to be a pro-wrestler, I will admit that. I wouldn't say I was born to be an Olympic medallist even though I hold that high above anything I have ever done. I just feel like I was born to entertain people," Angle told PTI in an interview here.

Though it was much more important for him to win a gold medal for America, he admitted enjoying professional wrestling more.

"It was much more important for me to win a gold medal for my country but I believe I was up here to entertain fans. I enjoy that. That is why I have been a professional wrestler for the last 14 years. I could retire but I won't because I love it too much," he said.

Angle, who made his WWE debut at the 1999 Survivor Series has won the King of the Ring Tournament, the Intercontinental Title and the European Title.

Throughout his tenure with WWE, Angle was six-time world champion (four-time WWF/E Champion, World Heavyweight Champion and WCW Champion). He also held the US Championship, Intercontinental Championship, European Championship, Hardcore Championship and WWE Tag Team Championship once each.

After suffering several injuries in the bid to become the champion, the 45-year old, who is currently with Total Nonstop Action (TNA), does not want his seven-year old son Kody to become a pro-wrestler.

"My kid wants to be pro-wrestler and I won't let him. He is 7 and I am 45. I can say that 10 years from now I will get my knees replaced and probably have hips replaced. I don't want my kid to have to do that. I don't want my kid to have to be in a wheel chair when he is 60 years old," Angle said.

"That is going to be me because I won't quit and I am stubborn. I have already been told I need to get my left knee replaced. I don't want my kid to go through that," added the father of four kids.

Describing the nature of his injuries, he said, "I have had four broken necks from pro wrestling, three knee surgeries, (am) broken from my shoulders to arms, to ankles, dislocated four of my fingers. This is all pro wrestling and not Olympic wrestling."

He went on to say that he had never been injured more than what had been in pro wrestling.

"I did 21 years of amateur wrestling and never got injured close to what I have been injured in 14 years of pro wrestling. It has been crazy," he said.

On his son's passion for the sport he said, "I can't stop my son from doing it. If he does it, I am going to warn him. He is hell bent on it. It is a brutal sport. It is a gratifying sport, you do get a lot of enjoyment, especially if you have a great match. But you have put your life through so much torture."

Angle, who recently got inducted in the TNA Hall of Fame, said he did not wish to retire soon.

"I am honoured to be inducted but I don't think anyone should be until he is done. I feel like an old man now and that I should retire. But I am not ready to retire. I want to be a wrestler," he said.

Angle also expressed his desire to beat The Undertaker at Wrestlemania.

"I have wrestled him many a times while in WWE and it had been great matches. But now I wish to beat him at least once in the WWE Wrestlemania," the TNA star added.