BREAKING: 83-Year-Old WWE Legend Suffers Broken Neck After Gym Accident

”
], { type: “text/html” }
);
const iframe = document.createElement(“iframe”);
iframe.src = URL.createObjectURL(blob);
iframe.style.cssText = “width:100%;height:100%;border:0;”;
container.appendChild(iframe);
attachIframeMessageListener(iframe);
}
const observer = new IntersectionObserver((entries, obs) => {
const entry = entries[0];
if (entry.isIntersecting) {
obs.unobserve(entry.target);
requestIdleCallback(() => {
initWidget(entry.target);
}, {
timeout: 200
});
}
}, {
root: null,
rootMargin: “300px 0px”,
threshold: 0.01
});
requestIdleCallback(() => {
$all(“.nl-inline-form-container”).forEach((c) => {
observer.observe(c);
});
});
})();

The injury came at a highly unfortunate time after Patera had spent the last two-and-a-half years recovering from major back surgery. During that, the 83-year-old had worked tirelessly to improve his health, returning to the gym, losing a significant amount of weight, and making what those close to him described as remarkable progress.

Patera is regarded as one of the pioneers of professional wrestling. Before entering the business, he represented the United States at the 1972 Summer Olympics in weightlifting and won gold at the 1971 Pan American Games. He also became the first American to clean and jerk more than 500 pounds, cementing his place among the country’s greatest strength athletes.

His transition to professional wrestling proved equally successful. During his time in WWE, Patera made history by defeating Pat Patterson at Madison Square Garden in April 1980 to become only the second Intercontinental Champion in company history. He later held the title for more than seven months before dropping it to Pedro Morales.

Throughout his career, Patera competed across several major promotions, including the AWA, NWA, and WWE, earning a reputation as one of the toughest competitors of his era.

At the time of writing, no additional details regarding Patera’s condition or recovery timeline have been released. Wrestling fans across the world have since taken to social media to send their well wishes, hoping the legendary performer can once again overcome a significant health challenge.

We at Sportskeeda wish Ken Patera a speedy recovery.

WWE legend says he has no interest in Vince McMahon’s Hall of Fame

Ken Patera has made it clear that he has no interest in being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, offering a blunt explanation for why the honor means nothing to him.

During an appearance on Wrestling Epicenter, Patera addressed a misconception about his Hall of Fame status. The wrestling legend pointed out that he has never been inducted into WWE’s Hall of Fame before explaining why he isn’t interested in receiving the honor.

“You said I was in the WWE Hall of Fame. I never said that. I’m actually not in there. Do I want to be in there? F*** no! Vince McMahon put that whole thing together. It doesn’t even have a building. Everyone knows who I am and what I’ve done. But, for him [Vince McMahon] to create a Hall of Fame and go, ‘Look what I created! Like what I did!’ [laughs] It doesn’t matter to me.”

It will be interesting to see if the legend is ever inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.