At his first international competition, the 1920 Olympics, he lost in a semifinal to the eventual silver medalist Heikki Kähkönen.

Next year he finished fourth at the world championships, and in 1922 won a silver medal.

He retired from competitions in 1933 and attended the 1936 Summer Olympics as the head coach of the Latvian wrestling team.

During World War II he moved to Finland and continued to coach wrestlers there.

[citation needed] In 1924, he starred in Õnnelik korterikriisi lahendus, directed by Konstantin Märska, and in 1925 played in Tšeka komissar Miroštšenko.