Allen Coage Allen James Coage ( October 22 , 1943 – March 6 , 2007 ) was an American professional wrestler with the WWF and Stampede Wrestling among many other companies , better known by his ring name s Bad News Brown and Bad News Allen . He was also the 1976 Olympic bronze medal winner in judo , in the heavyweight division . He remains the only American heavyweight to have won an Olympic medal in judo . Biography . Early judo and wrestling training . Allen Coage was a US Grand Champion for Judo and received a full scholarship to the Kodokan with the help of Hank Kraft . Prior to his training as a wrestler , Coage trained in judo for the better part of two decades , under the direction of renowned instructor Yoshisada Yonezuka , and earned a spot on the United States Olympic team at the Games in Montreal . He even trained in Japan with judoka masters , living in near poverty and continuing on solely for the love of his sport . After his bronze medal victory , Coage attempted to open his own judo school . Later , he decided to try his hand at professional wrestling . He began training with Antonio Inoki around 1978 . New Japan Pro Wrestling , World Wide Wrestling Federation , and Stampede Wrestling ( 1977 - 1988 ) . After short stints with New Japan Pro Wrestling and the then - World Wide Wrestling Federation , Bad News Allen found a long - term home in Stu Hart ' s Stampede Wrestling , centered in Allen ' s adopted home city of Calgary . Allen remained with Stampede from 1982 until 1988 , with some tours of Australia and Florida during that time , and had matches with wrestlers such as the Dynamite Kid and Bret Hart . He often referred to himself in interviews as " the Ultimate Warrior , " a name that was later used more famously by wrestler Jim Hellwig . World Wrestling Federation ( 1988 - 1990 ) . Allen returned to the World Wrestling Federation in early 1988 as Bad News Brown , and it was during this time that he achieved his greatest notoriety . While the roster was mostly filled with ultra - virtuous babyfaces and cowardly and monster heels , Bad News was something entirely different ; a tough loner who stood on his own and fought to his last breath . While other heels had hitherto largely displayed some form of affinity to one another , Bad News was reclusive ; as such , he respected nobody - not even the other heels - as he showed when abandoning his teams at the Survivor Series of 1988 and 1989 . Some memorable moments from his WWF tenure included winning the battle royal at WrestleMania IV by eliminating Bret Hart , who was then a heel , after a sneak attack , a brief feud with then - champion Randy Savage in early 1989 which led to matches in the main event , feuding with Roddy Piper ( starting before the 1990 Royal Rumble and culminating at WrestleMania VI ) and with Jake " The Snake " Roberts ( where Bad News had a sewer rat against Jake ' s snake ) and attacking WWF President Jack Tunney on " The Brother Love Show " . Bad News also had a brief run challenging Hulk Hogan for the WWF Championship . Bad News eventually left the WWF after SummerSlam 1990 , claiming Vince McMahon failed to live up to his promise to make him the company ' s first black champion . As written in the autobiography of the Dynamite Kid , his well - known toughness was accentuated in a confrontation involving André the Giant , who had made a racist comment on a tour bus for New Japan Pro Wrestling . Coage overheard it and made the driver stop the bus , walking off and yelling at the Giant to get off and fight him one on one . In one of the few times anyone can remember him backing down from someone , André did not move from his seat and later apologized for the remark . According to Hulk Hogan , whom was questioned about the incident on the television show " The Voice " this never happened . He claimed what actually happened was he was sitting in between Brown and Andre and after a joke was made by Andre , Brown reached into his bag and Andre said that if he pulled anything on him he would end him and that was the end of it . Later wrestling career ( 1990 - 1999 ) . Coage continued to work in independent promotions for several more years , including Japan ' s shoot wrestling UWFi promotion . Coage retired in 1999 due to knee damage . He continued occasionally working independent shows for friends while living in Calgary with his wife , and had considered starting a promotion himself . Additionally , he taught wrestling with Canadian wrestling coach Leo Jean , and worked as a mall security officer in Airdrie , Alberta . Death . Coage died on the morning of March 6 , 2007 in his hometown of Calgary at Rockyview Hospital , having been rushed to the hospital after complaining of chest pains . He died minutes later of a heart attack .