This week’s JoshStrength Personality of the Week is another glorious example of hard work and perseverance. Although not well known in the folklore of military heroes, Army Master Sgt. Roy P. Benavidez deserves a spot among the very best.

In 1952, a young lad from Cuero, Texas, enlisted into the air force. He would slowly rise through the ranks, gaining admiration for his dedication to service. Benavidez was assigned to small tasks in the air force until 1965, when he was shipped off to South Vietnam as an advisor. Despite not being anywhere near the front line, he immediately would come under serious affliction. Benavidez stepped on a landmine one of his very first days in South Vietnam. Benavidez lay shattered in the hospital with a broken spine. Doctors told him he would never walk again, but determined to serve his country, Benavidez healed and walked out of the hospital on his own will.

Sgt. Benavidez would return to South Vietnam in 1968 with a taste of vengeance because of what had happened to him. One day, after hearing of a 12-man troop surrounded by the enemy, Benavidez hopped on a helicopter to save them - carrying only a knife and medical supplies. Benavidez “distinguished himself by a series of daring and extremely glorious actions... and because of his gallant choice to join voluntarily his comrades who were in critical straits, to expose himself constantly to withering enemy fire, and his refusal to be stopped despite numerous severe wounds, saved the lives of at least eight men.”

Green Beret Benavidez did not just receive a few scratches trying to save these men. He was stabbed several times with bayonets and had numerous bullet and shrapnel wounds. Benavidez, with his “never say die” attitude, fought for six hours to save the men despite his catastrophic injuries. Bayonet and bullet wounds were nothing more than a stubbed toe to this soldier. After saving eight of the 12 men that were trapped, Benavidez was sent to the same hospital that he went to after his land mine incident. Benavidez had over 37 different wounds. Again, the doctors gave a gloomy diagnosis, saying that Benavidez would soon die. Determined, Benavidez healed up and again walked out of the hospital.

U.S. President Ronald Reagan awarded the much deserved Medal of Honor to Army Master Sgt. Roy P. Benavidez. He will always serve as a shining example of dedication, determination, and toughness. Benavidez fought for six hours with more bullet and bayonet wounds afflicting him every minute. The next time you want to rest or stop because of a slight discomfort, ask yourself, would Roy P. Benavidez give up?

Ask any champion how they got to the top, and the first answer you will hear is usually a name: a coach, an inspirational icon, or a source of support. Sometimes, the best champions have all three of these things in the same individual. Recently, the “Boston Strongboy” was profiled as the personality of the week. For any those of you who may have missed this posting, be sure to read up on the legend that was John L. Sullivan, the last bare-knuckle boxing champion. John L. Sullivan did not achieve his excellence without strong backing though, and this is important. Sullivan had a larger-than-life coach, icon, and supporter with him his whole journey, and this man was the great William Muldoon.

Although mostly recognized as a great boxing coach, Muldoon was much more than that. Muldoon could truly be considered a “renaissance man,” finding success in all aspects of his life. He was a successful soldier for the Union in the Civil War, champion wrestler, brilliant thespian, tough cop, enforcing bouncer, popular business owner (both a gym and a bar), as well as his success in the coaching world. Ironically, it would be his own bar where he would meet John L. Sullivan. Sullivan, despite all of his excellence, was a chronic alcoholic. It was said Sullivan had the most God-given talent of any human at the time, but many believed he wasted away his potential in liquor. Muldoon, seeing this man act like anything but a champion, gave Sullivan the strong-arm and whipped him into shape. Sullivan transformed from a flabby, haymaker-throwing alcoholic to a lean mean boxing machine, all under the guidance of Muldoon. The two enjoyed many successful matches, as Sullivan would tour the country with Muldoon in his corner defeating all comers.

While Muldoon put Sullivan in the best shape of his life, he could not fix Sullivan’s alcoholism. On numerous occasions, Muldoon would threaten Sullivan with his life if he did not stop drinking. Rumor has it Muldoon once chased down a drunken Sullivan shouting “either you give me the liquor or your life!” Muldoon had to wrestle Sullivan into submission time and time again when Sullivan would sneak out for a drink. Muldoon would threaten Sullivan with a baseball bat to get him to training. Muldoon was not crazy; he was simply helping Sullivan reach his full potential and helped him become of the greatest champions of all time.

There are many lessons to be learned from William Muldoon. One could look at his life and see an example of helping another man break from mediocrity. One could also see the vast array of talents Muldoon had and find that life is full of great things to experience. However, the most important thing to find in William Muldoon is that despite chronic alcoholism, he never allowed his friend John L. Sullivan to be anything but his absolute best.

Wrestling takes on many thoughts for many people. When hearing the word “wrestling”, one could think of the glitz, glamour, and massive figures in professional wrestling, or one could also think of Greco-Roman wrestling and the ancient history behind it. What most do not think of, however, is Pehlwani. Pehlwani is a popular style of wrestling from India. Although this may not seem special, it has built champions in size and strength as long as it has existed. This week’s JoshStrengh personality of the week, The Great Gama, exemplifies excellence ahead of his time in his craft.

The Great Gama was born in 1880 in Amritsar, Punjab, part of British India. When he was ten years old, he competed in a strongman contest among over four hundred other older wrestlers. He outlasted the other competitors and reached the final ten. Because of his young age, he was declared the winner for his amazing strength and stamina.

All the way up until he was nineteen, the Great Gama would increase his physical prowess to impressive levels. He would then enter a wrestling competition against the current Indian Wrestling Champion. The match would last for many hours and end in a draw. It would be the only match the Great Gama would not win. Because of this accomplishment, Gama would go on to face the champion again and win decisively. After this, he would go on a very impressive streak of victories (that would never be stopped). Because of the lack of true competition, Gama posted an open challenge to anyone who thought he could defeat the Great Gama. Many rose to the challenge to face Gama, but none would come close to victory.

The Great Gama was truly dominant. In 1929, Gama would wrestle his final match, although not on his terms. His open challenge would remain open until 1952 when he retired, but none answered the call, fearing the force that was the Great Gama.

The Great Gama is an example of two things: dominance and dedication. Many credited Gama’s great strength to his success, and because he remained undefeated, used this strength to be the most dominant force Pehlwani wrestling has ever seen.