Hackenschmidt became a professional wrestler around 1898 and went undefeated for over 3000 matches, until his 1908 match with Frank Gotch. Hackenschmidt lost to Gotch after 2 hours and 3 minutes.
Hackenschmidt retired from professional wrestling in 1911 due to recurring injuies, and went on to write several books. Hackenschmidt died in London in 1968 at the age of 90.