Nicknamed "The Flying Frenchman", Carpentier championed a high-flying wrestling style, and was known for his athletic manoeuvres including "back flips, cartwheels and somersaults".[3] After retiring from wrestling, he became a colour commentator for Lutte Internationale and later the World Wrestling Federation (WWF).
After the war, Weiczorkiewicz obtained a degree in physical education. He qualified as an alternate for the French Gymnastics Team at both the 1948 and 1952 Summer Olympics, though he did not compete.[7] He was also part of the French national team at the 1950 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships.[8]
Weiczorkiewicz was introduced to professional wrestling by his friend, film star Lino Ventura. Prior to his acting career, Ventura had been a successful wrestler under the ring name "The Italian Rocket" Lino Borrini.[6] Ventura initially employed Weiczorkiewicz as a stuntman, doubling for Eddie Constantine, but suggested to he take up wrestling.[7] He initially used the ring name "Eddy Wiechoski".[3]
In North America
In 1956, Weiczorkiewicz was spotted by Canadian wrestler Larry Moquin. Impressed by the young Frenchman's athleticism and ring ability, he recommended him to promoters Eddie Quinn and Yvon Robert.[6] Robert offered Weiczorkiewicz a contract to wrestle in Montreal, and Weiczorkiewicz moved there later that year. He adopted the ring name "Edouard Carpentier," after boxer Georges Carpentier, and was billed as the "European Heavyweight Champion."[6] He later became a naturalised Canadian citizen.[1]
Carpentier was a crowd favourite, one of the first wrestlers to delight fans with acrobatic leaps from the turnbuckles and a variety of other aerial manoeuvres such as the rope-aided twisting headscissors.[1] He was always a fan favourite in his bouts and was matched against numerous villains, perhaps the most well known of whom was the legendary Killer Kowalski.
In 1961, he was one of several Montreal wrestling stars to be featured in Wrestling (French: La lutte), a National Film Board of Canada documentary.[9]
The highpoint of his career was his NWA World Heavyweight Championship reign from 1956 to 1957. He won the title in a disputed contest against Lou Thesz on 14 June 1957.[1] Some NWA territories and officials recognized the disputed win as a legitimate title change, while others did not. This led to the split of the NWA and led to the creation of other organizations, all with their own world titles. He was later recognized as the first holder of the Omaha version of the World Heavyweight Championship. He eventually dropped the belt to Verne Gagne. The Omaha title was unified with the AWA World Heavyweight Championship in 1963.[10]
After his retirement, Carpentier operated a school for teaching professional wrestling skills.[1] He also operated in the early 1980s as a babyface colour commentator, alongside heel play-by-play host Guy Hauray, for the Montreal-based Lutte Internationale, and then, together for the World Wrestling Federation, when the WWF bought the Montreal territory in 1985. They hosted the French edition of the WWF television show Superstars, sold to French-speaking countries.[1] He was replaced by former Québécois wrestler Raymond Rougeau in 1992.
Death
On 30 October 2010, Carpentier died of a heart attack at his home in Montreal, aged 84. He had also suffered a heart attack in 2000. Carpentier had been in poor health for many years, battered from his acrobatic, high-flying style.[2]
^Carpentier was awarded the title by disqualification when Thesz could not continue the match due to a back injury. For 71 days, the NWA recognized the title as being in dispute between Carpentier and Thesz.
^Mathieu Boulay, Agence QMI (2010-11-01). "Édouard Carpentier n'est plus" (in French). Canoë Sports. Archived from the original on July 9, 2012. Retrieved 2013-03-04.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^Cawthon, Graham (2013). the History of Professional Wrestling Vol 1: WWF 1963 - 1989. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN978-1492825975.
