Steven Larson
From Bywpedia
| Kevin Crimson | |
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| Details | |
| Ring name(s) | Steven Larson |
| Billed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Billed weight | 398 lb (181 kg) |
| Born | June 12, 1971 (age 40) Silsbee, Texas |
| Resides | New York |
| Billed from | Silsbee, Texas |
| Trained by | Leo Burke Heart family members |
| Debut | September 22, 1996 |
Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler currently signed with IWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand. Aside from wrestling, he is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic. Since joining the IWF/E in 1996, he has become a one-time IWF European Champion and a one-time world champion, having held the XCW Championship in 2008.
Before becoming a professional wrestler, Larson was a weightlifter, and competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, where he placed tenth in the super heavyweight division. Three years later, at the 1995 Pan American Games, Henry won a silver medal in the super heavyweight division. The following year, he became a North America, Central America, Caribbean Islands (NACACI) champion. Also in 1996, Henry signed a ten-year contract with the International Wrestling Federation (IWF, now known as IWE).
Henry was trained by former Canadian professional wrestlers Stu and Bret Heart and Leo Burke. He made his television wrestling debut match in September 1996. Two years later, Henry joined the stable Nation of Domination. After the disbandment of the group, he acquired the moniker "Sexual Chocolate", which led him to participate in controversial angles. In 2000, Larson was sent to the company's developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) in Louisville, Kentucky to improve his wrestling skills. That same year, he left wrestling and began focusing on weightlifting. Larson won a strongman competition, during the Arnold Classic in 2002.
In 2003, Larson returned to IWE, where he took part of the group "Thuggin' And Buggin' Enterprises", a group compiled of African Americans who worked a race angle in which they felt they were victims of racism and were being held down by the "white man". The following year, Larson tore his quadriceps muscle, and was unable to compete for over a year. Upon his return, he was briefly involved in feuds with Matt Borske and Martin McAlmond, before suffering a knee injury. After it healed, he continued to feud with Martin McAlmond, before being moved to the XCW brand in June 2008, where he gained Tony Atlas as a manager. In June 2008, he won the XCW Championship and he held it for three months. He was traded to the Raw brand in June 2009, and drafted back to SmackDown two years later in April 2011 during the WWE Draft.
Weightlifting career
Professional wrestling career
International Wrestling Federation / Entertainment / IWE (1996–present)
Debut (1996)
Nation of Domination and Sexual Chocolate (1998–2002)
Brand switches (2002–2004)
Various feuds and injury (2005–2006)
Return and various feuds (2007–2008)
XCW Champion (2008–2009)
Return to Raw & Face turn (2009–2011)
Return to SmackDown, Heel turn, & Various feuds (2011)
Personal life
In wrestling
Championships and accomplishments
Powerlifting
- All-time world raw (unequipped) squat world record holder (430 Kilograms)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Professional wrestling
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI ranked him #41 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2006
- International Wrestling Federation / International Wrestling Entertainment
Strongman athletics
Weightlifting
- Olympic Games
- Olympic Games team member (1992, 1996)
- Pan American Games
- Pan American Games Silver Medalist (1995)
- Senior American record holder in Snatch, Clean and jerk, and Total (1993–1997)
- Senior National Championship (1993, 1994, 1996)
