I starred in James Bond and Rocky before becoming team leader of the United States’ 1996 Modern Pentathlon squad
'If He Dies, He Dies' is the iconic quote nearly all Americans want to hear Dolph Lundgren say.
The few exceptions are the country's 1996 Modern pentathlon team.
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But the hulking Swede is more than just a fictional legend killer - he can speak seven languages, English being one of the two in which he is fluent and has a Master's degree in chemical engineering.
In addition, the 66-year-old is a fourth-dan black belt in Kyokushin karate.
Making his acting debut in 1985's ‘A View to a Kill’; Roger Moore's final outing as James Bond, it took his breakthrough role as Russian Ivan Drago in ‘Rocky IV’ a few months later for him to become a household name having ended Apollo Creed's life in the ring.
Lundgren had just nine lines of dialogue in the film, but its success paved the way for him to establish himself as a mainstream actor.
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Within a decade, the American cult hero was the star of his own Hollywood releases, which included Olympic flick ‘Pentathlon’.
Lundgren's prepration for his role as East German gold medalist Eric Brogar saw him train with two 1996 Atlanta Olympians.
Mike Gostigan finished 16th in the Men's modern pentathlon, while Paul McMullen was a semi-finalist in the men's 1500 metres.
The trio practiced pentathlon events together in San Antonio, with archived footage even showing Lundgren make lighthearted bets with the USA sporting stars during their shooting training.
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Although the film proved to be a box office bomb, the work behind the scenes put Lundgren on a mission to save modern pentathlon.
Despite being a part of the Olympic program since Stockholm 1912, the sport has had to adapt to justify its inclusion at recent Games.
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One of those major changes came in 1996 when it pivoted to a one-day format - but fortunately for organisers, plenty of eyes were going to be on the event regardless.
That's because Lundgren was selected by the United States Olympic Committee as the American modern pentathlon team leader.
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Although the role was largey honourary, the Swedish star marched with the US delegation in the Opening Ceremony.
He explained to in 1996: "I guess in practical terms you take care of everything to do with the team and the Olympics, like the travel, transportation, housing, uniforms, tickets and other events."
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On penthalon as a whole, Lundgren added: "You do five sports in one day, starting around seven in the morning, and you finish with the run at seven at night.
"It's rough, and these guys know they're going for the gold medal. They've trained for as much as 10 to 15 years, some of these guys."
While despite never participating in a whole event, Lundgren did take part in all the individual disciplines as well as training the athletes.
He told the in 2008 that fencing (because of his karate background) and shooting were his best, but at 6ft 5in, developing his showjumping skills proved a challenge.
Good thing for Team GB's medal hopes that Lundgren wasn't in charge of our equestrian team in Paris then...
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