Greg Oliver | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1971-02-02)February 2, 1971 (age 55)[1] |
| Occupation | Writer, editor |
| Language | English |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Education | Bachelor of Applied Arts |
| Alma mater | Ryerson Polytechnic University |
| Website | |
| oliverbooks | |
Greg Oliver (born February 2, 1971, inKitchener, Ontario)[1] is aCanadiansports writer. He currently resides inToronto,Ontario, Canada.
He earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts in journalism, newspaper major, in 1993 fromRyerson Polytechnic University.[1]
He is the author of seven books on professional wrestling, and six books on hockey. He is also the co-founder of the Slam Wrestling website, which began as a part of the Sun Media family on the Canoe.ca website. On June 1, 2020, Slam Wrestling ended its association with Postmedia and established SlamWrestling.net.[2] In June 2025, Oliver announced he has left SlamWrestling.[3]
Oliver has contributed to many other publications, includingThe Hockey News,Publishers Weekly,The Globe and Mail, TheToronto Sun,Kingston Whig-Standard,Kitchener-Waterloo Record,Atlanta Journal-Constitution,Fighting Spirit Magazine. As a teenager, he publishedThe Canadian Wrestling Report (1985-1990).[1]
Oliver's work has been reviewed byBooklist,Quill and Quire,Publishers Weekly,Winnipeg Free Press,London Free Press,Kitchener-Waterloo Record,New York Journal of Books.Don't Call Me Goon: Hockey's Greatest Enforcers, Gunslingers, and Bad Boys, madeThe Globe and Mail Top 10 for non-fiction in October 2013, andGibby: Tales of a Baseball Lifer written with baseball'sJohn Gibbons rose to #2 on Canada's non-fiction bestseller list.
The 2017 documentary, Sweet Daddy Siki, about professional wrestlerReginald "Sweet Daddy" Siki, was written by Oliver.[4] In March 2025, the documentaryLunatic: The Luna Vachon Story aboutLuna Vachon was released, with Oliver as an associate producer.[5]
In September 2021, it was announced that Oliver is working withMadusa Debrah Miceli on her autobiography, covering her time in wrestling and in monster trucks.The Woman Who Would Be King: The MADUSA Story came out in the spring of 2023 from ECW Press.[6] John Lister at Pro Wrestling Books wrote: “Definitely more of a life story than a wrestling book, this should still appeal to Miceli’s fans.”[7]
In February 2024, Oliver teamed with Canadian comedian Eric Johnston onRun with the Bull: Three Generations of Sports and Entertainment (with Joseph Casciaro), which not only details Johnston's adventures in comedy and acting, but also his family's history in professional wrestling, namely his grandfather, Bull Johnson, father,Bullwhip Danny Johnson and uncle Randy Johnson.
In July 2008Bret Hart spoke about Oliver at theGeorge Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame during the induction banquet for his fatherStu Hart. Upset over his ranking in one of Oliver's books – #14 in the greatest Canadian performers, behindmidget wrestlerSky Low Low – Hart called Oliver a "charlatan".[8] Sports journalistHeath McCoy also criticized Oliver for his placement of Hart, asking if he was joking with that decision and saying the book was highly biased toward Ontario wrestling.[9]
He is married to author Meredith Renwick, and he worked on the book,Duck with the Puck, with their son, Quinn Oliver. His brother, Chris Oliver, is a well-known college basketball coach and instructor.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
