Heidi Ranke
Heidi Ranke | |
---|---|
Born | about 1959 |
Nationality | German |
Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) |
Weight | 126 lb (57.2 kg; 9.0 st) |
Wrestles for | LGIS (Old) |
Years active | 1976 - 1979 |
Assumed Competitive Female Wrestling Record | |
Wins | 24 |
Losses | 8 |
Assumed Competitive Mixed Wrestling Record | |
Other information |
Heidi Ranke was a founding member of the original incarnation of the Liberal Girls International SportClub - otherwise known as LGIS (Old) - a female boxing and wrestling organisation founded in Munich, Germany in 1976. It promoted a ground-breaking vision - that girls who were enthusiastic about female combat, and who wanted to fight semi-professionally in public settings, could do so topless in properly arranged events and tournaments.
The company was formed in 1976 by Fred Strothmann and Erich Klinger together with Angie who was the nominated club captain and one of the core membership of ten or so who were regular performers throughout the lifetime of the club. The initial group of fighters, including Heidi began several months of wrestling and boxing training in 1976, and on January 31st 1977 eight active members of the group entered the ring in the centre of the "Donauhalle" of Ingolstadt (about 60km north of Munich) in front of 700 spectators to take part in the inaugural event which launched the organisation. The main group divided into two groups of four, each of which staged a mini-tournament - wrestling and boxing. Angie won the boxing competition while Heidi, later to become a fearsome boxer, won the wrestling with a convincing win over Karin.
Throughout the duration of the clubs existence Heidi is reckoned to have boxed in over thirty bouts, winning three for every one she lost. She had a great rivalry with club captain Angie, who was one of the few boxers able to beat her more than once. In Angie's words the competition between the two was intense :-
"Even many years later I take big pride in being the very first woman in the world who put on a serious topless boxing-fight in a public ring. I still remember the fantastic applause and I never shall forget for the rest of my life the great admiration from thousands of cheering men watching me fighting, close at the ringside, especially when I was facing my arch-rival Heidi Ranke. We met 5 times - always under the condition that the winner gets the entire purse - so we agreed that there should be a clear decision (KO. or retirement). "
Like nearly all the group members, she retired from the female fighting scene with the demise of the LGIS organisation.
Competitive female boxing record
A list of Heidi Ranke's competitive F/F boxing matches. This list is not complete.
Date | Producer | Video Title | Opponent | Result | Rules | Clothes | Comments | Links | Pic |
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1977 | LGIS (Old) via ASFilm | BX1014-1 | Angie Simons | TKO | Boxing | Topless | In the eighth round of an exhausting battle Angie produced some stunning punches which floored Heidi and caused the referee to halt the bout at that point | Link to match | |
1978 | LGIS (Old) via ASFilm | BX1013-7 | Angie Simons | TKO | Boxing | Topless | An amazing performance by Angie who, despite being floored three times, kept coming back at Heidi and in the end beat her into defeat with a barrage of body shots | Link to match |
Gallery
Acknowledgements
This page was constructed with assistance from Arbie (Count Herout), Merlin and Fred Dobbs