Jigjidiin Mönkhbat

Jigjidiin Mönkhbat (; 1 June 1941 – 9 April 2018) was a Mongolian wrestler. Mönkhbat was the undefeated 1968 vice Olympic champion in the 87 kg.

Mönkhbat placed fourth in the middleweight (87 kg) division at the 1966 World Wrestling Championships, defeating the strongest 1964 Olympic wrestler and reigning three-time World champion Mansour Mehdizadeh before losing bronze medal competition to Josef Urban.

At the 1967 World Wrestling Championships Mönkhbat held a bronze medal, ahead of Majid Aghili.

At the 1968 Summer Olympics he won the silver medal in the men's Freestyle Middleweight category (87 kg), behind gold medalist Boris Michail Gurevich and ahead of bronze medalist Prodan Gardzhev. Mönkhbat left the tournament as undefeated wrestler, his results in the Olympics were 4 wins, 2 draws, and 0 losses:

Round Opponent Сountry Results Penalties Time 1 Peter Döring Won by Points 1 2 Raúl García Won by Fall (TF) 0 (1:17) 3 Jean-Marie Chardonnens Won by Technical Superiority 0,5 4 Bye 0 5 Prodan Gardzhev Draw 2 6 Boris Gurevich Draw 2 7 Tom Peckham Won by Points 1

Mönkhbat was a State Grand Champion in bökh, a top rank in the sport, with six Naadam championship wins (1963–1967, 1974). His name Mönkhbat means "Eternal firm" in the Mongolian language.

Mönkhbat was the father of professional sumo wrestler Hakuhō Shō, who held the top rank of yokozuna in that sport before retiring. His son Hakuhō regards his six Nadaam championships as the equivalent of 36 tournament championships in sumo (as sumo tournaments are held six times a year) and used that as motivation to keep going even after passing Taihō's record of 32 championships.

Bökh career record

Legacy In bökh, Mönkhbat won five consecutive tournaments, a feat matched by only two other athletes in the modern history of the sport since 1922.

Mönkhbat's statue was erected in his honor and in celebration of his achievements on July 21, 2021, in his hometown of Erdenesant, Tuv Province, Mongolia. The event also marked the 100th anniversary of Erdensant sum. His student and fellow State Grand Champion Gelegjamtsyn Ösökhbayar attended the opening ceremony.

Mönkhbat was one of the first holders of the highest national record in the international sports, along with the first international gold medalist and World Chess Olympiad champion Tüdeviin Üitümen, and first World champion, archer Doljin Demberel.