Even in his 70s, Tim Dench still has the moves
STILL WRESTING
AFTER ALL THESE YEARS
Even in his 70s, Tim Dench still has the moves
By PATRICK MURPHY
Dench, 72, is still giving back to wrestling, the sport he began when he was in sixth grade. But these past couple of years haven’ t been easy for the radio and TV teacher at Floyd Central High School, especially after a health scare last year.
“ On a routine physical I took a lot of tests, but taking the calcium test did catch it,” Dench recalled.“ My doctor called me on the phone and said:‘ You have to come in because we don’ t understand why you’ re not dead. The computer says there’ s an 87 percent chance you should be dead.’
“ I was laughing and told the doctor:‘ I just went through a wrestling practice where I was showing moves, and I work 15- to 16-hour days. I feel fine. Are you sure you have the right guy?’ The doctor said:‘ No, this is you. You have to get in.’”
Six of Dench’ s arteries were blocking 90 percent of the blood to his heart. So, on Nov. 20, 2024, he went under the knife.
“ The doctor told me I didn’ t have a heart attack, but they caught it,” Dench recalled.“ The calcium test was what alerted them. I have had a few of my former wrestlers or people that they knew had heart attacks and the calcium test was what caught it. … I always tell males to go get a calcium test. I never heard of it before and apparently it checks the calcium build-up around your heart and that’ s how they caught it. A lot of people did think I had a heart attack, but I didn’ t. I was glad the doctors caught it.”
START OF WRESTLING CAREER
Dench began wrestling at Fern Creek( Ky.) High School in the mid-1960s. At just 119 pounds and 5-foot-6, he was not cut out for football or basketball. That was when his friend, Brian Jones, encouraged him to join the wrestling team.
“ Brian was on the wrestling team and told me to come out,” Dench remembered.“ I started out and I liked it because I was competing against people my own size. It was a sport where I can compete
NOV / DEC 2025 NEWS AND TRIBUNE SPORTS MAGAZINE PAGE NO. 15