Robert Louis Backlund (born August 14, 1949) is an American retired professional wrestler with an in-ring career spanning over 30 years, best known for his tenures in the World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Federation (WWWF/WWF, later known as World Wrestling Entertainment and currently simply known as WWE), where he is a two-time WWWF/WWF Heavyweight Champion/WWF World Heavyweight Champion (Backlund\'s first reign is the second-longest reign in the title history, behind Bruno Sammartino\'s first), as well as being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013.\n', '

Backlund was an accomplished amateur wrestler for the North Dakota State University Bison from the late 1960s to early 1970s. In 2000, he unsuccessfully ran for a Connecticut seat in Congress on a Republican ticket.\n', '

Backlund was born in Princeton, Minnesota, in 1949. During his freshman year, Backlund was an All-American in both football and wrestling (191 lb [87 kg], finishing third) while at Waldorf Junior College in Forest City, Iowa. During his sophomore campaign, Backlund focused on wrestling and once again earned All American Honors (190 lb [86 kg] and national runner-up). Backlund was an amateur wrestler at North Dakota State University, winning the Division II NCAA Championship at 190 pounds in 1971. In 1972 Backlund moved up to the heavyweight class and finished fifth at the NCAA DII Nationals. He is a graduate of Princeton High School, where he was a state finalist in wrestling. He graduated from North Dakota State University with a degree in physical education.\n', '

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