Kurt Angle opens up about retiring from pro-wrestling.
The Olympic Hero discussed this topic during a recent interview with Chris Van Vilet. Angle begins by admitting that his quality of life is pretty poor since his body is so banged up from his years in the business, adding that he thinks he should have retired five years earlier than he did.
I wish [I could still go]. You know what, my quality of life right now Chris isn’t so good. I had my knees replaced about a year ago, I had back surgery about four months ago, I have to have my shoulder replaced, and I still have another neck surgery coming up. That will be my fourth neck surgery. I really paid the price wrestling as long as I did. I wrestled amateur wrestling for 20 years and then pro for 20. And looking back, sometimes I regret maybe I should have retired five years earlier.
He later states that he doesn’t really get to play with his kids too often because his body is so banged up still.
Because you know, it comes to a point in time in your life where you’re older, and you want to play with your kids. And here I am having these surgeries, I can’t really do anything with them. I can’t pick them up. I can’t play with them. I can’t run with them. So it gets a little disgruntled thing that I’m not able to be the father that I want to be. And what I’m doing now is I’m having knee surgeries to have a better quality of life so I can play with them. And I just want to make it fast. Because these kids are growing up quickly. And I don’t want to miss it [I am in pain] Every day, every day, my back, my shoulder. My knees are good. My knees feel great. They recovered really well. I’m 100% with my knees. But my neck and my back and my shoulder. I have a lot of pain running all day long all night. So it’s something I just have to deal with until I have these surgeries and until I recuperate.
Elsewhere in the interview, Angle spoke about his run in TNA and how he was thinking about returning to WWE at that time. You can read about here.