Gus Champagne
REAL NAME: Gus Champagne
205 pounds
The name ‘Frenchy’ Champagne was synonymous with pro wrestling in Winnipeg in the 1960s and he was one of the early stars in the area.
He started wrestling in the mid-1950s and was Madison Club Heavyweight champion 1959-60.
Teaming with George “Red” Eakin, Champagne secured the top tag-team spot in the area for years, and he held the Madison Club tag titles on six different occasions.
In mid-1960, Ole Olsen teamed with Frenchy Champagne to win an eight-team tournament for the vacant Madison Club Tag-Team titles with a win over Bob Brown & Bill Kochen. Their title reign lasted for almost a year, seeing Champagne & Olsen become recognized as one of the most dominant twosomes of that period.
Champagne also served as a referee on Alex Turk’s big shows in Winnipeg when the top stars came to town.
In the 1970’s, Champagne briefly tried promoting himself. He ran a few cards in Manitoba.
Champagne passed away a number of years ago.