THE highly acclaimed biographical drama Foxcatcher has hit cinema screens — and one man from Westhoughton will be watching with particular interest.

Brian Aspen, who in his younger years was a bantamweight wrestler, came up against the legendary wrestler and Olympic champion Dave Schultz, played by actor Mark Ruffalo in Foxcatcher, in the junior world championships in Peru in 1974 — and Mr Aspen beat him.

Mr Aspen and Schultz met several times over the course of their careers, including when Mr Aspen competed in the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

When the pair came up against each other in 1974, both were relatively new on the wrestling scene — but Mr Aspen says the odds were stacked against him going into the match.

Mr Aspen, aged 55, of Glazebury Drive, said: "The contest was very close. Dave Schultz was a fantastic wrestler and his coaches had high hopes for him.

"I don't think they could believe that they'd lost to an English lad like me — I was a big underdog.

"When I look back now, considering Dave Schultz went on to become an Olympic champion, it makes me very proud — it's a big achievement.

"I saw Dave Schultz again in 1977 and 1984 and I spoke to him on both occasions.

"He was a respectful man who had a nice manner — and he was a hard lad to go with it. You could tell, just by looking at him, that he'd come a long way since I'd beaten him."

Mr Aspen, son of the legendary wrestler Albert Aspen, was a wrestler from 1965, when he was only six years old, until 1994.

Such was his talent, Mr Aspen was offered a scholarship in America, but turned it down to stay in Bolton as he already had a full-time job as a roofer for his father's business.

During Mr Aspen's glittering wrestling career, he became the first British wrestler to win a silver medal at a major tournament at the European championships in Sweden in 1984.

He said: "I enjoyed being a wrestler — I was very dedicated to the sport.

"It wasn't easy doing manual work as a full-time job and then training every night, but I loved it.

"I ate, slept and breathed wrestling and gave it everything I had."

Mr Aspen added that he will soon go to the cinema to watch Foxcatcher.

Based on true events, Foxcatcher tells the chilling and fascinating story of the relationship between eccentric multi-millionaire John du Pont (Steve Carell) and the Olympic gold medal-winning wrestlers Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) and David Schultz (Mark Ruffalo).