Wyatt Hendrickson
.jpg) Hendrickson in 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | January 13, 2001 Newton, Kansas, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | United States Air Force Academy, Oklahoma State University | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 250 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Country |  United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Wrestling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | Folkstyle wrestling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | Oklahoma State Cowboys Air Force Falcons | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Cowboy RTC | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Wyatt Hendrickson (born January 13, 2001) is an American wrestler. He competed in collegiate wrestling for the Air Force Falcons and Oklahoma State Cowboys. A heavyweight, he won the 2025 NCAA national championship, defeating Gable Steveson in a major upset.
Biography
[edit]Hendrickson is from Newton, Kansas.[1][2] He competed in wrestling while attending Newton High School, where he was a four-time All-American in the freestyle and Greco-Roman styles and won a Kansas state championship twice.[3] He was ranked the number three recruit in his weight class nationally and after graduating, enrolled at the United States Air Force Academy.[4] He had received offers to join numerous collegiate wrestling teams and initially threw a letter from Air Force away, before being convinced by his father to enroll there.[5]
As a freshman at Air Force in 2020–21, Hendrickson compiled a record of 16–5 and qualified for the NCAA Championships.[3] He then was the national pins leader as a sophomore and won the Big 12 Conference championship, compiling a record of 26–2 while returning to the NCAA Championships.[3] He won another Big 12 title in the 2022–23 season and finished third at the NCAA Championships, having compiled a record of 31–2 during the season.[6] He was an All-American, the first from Air Force in 20 years.[3] As a senior in 2023–24, he repeated as the third-place finisher at the NCAA Championships.[7] In his career with the Air Force Falcons, Hendrickson went 103–11 while being a two-time All-American.[8]
With an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hendrickson was selected for the World Class Athlete Program at Air Force, allowing him to delay his military service to continue his career.[5] He transferred to the Oklahoma State Cowboys for his final season of collegiate wrestling since military academies do not allow graduate students to compete.[5] He compiled an undefeated record of 27–0 during the 2024–25 season, qualifying for the NCAA Championships.[9] There, he advanced to the finals and defeated Gable Steveson, an Olympic gold medalist who had won 70-consecutive matches, with a takedown in the final seconds.[10] The commentators for the match described Hendrickson's win as the "biggest upset in NCAA history".[10] He celebrated his win with President Donald Trump, who was in attendance.[10]
Hendrickson holds the rank of second lieutenant in the United States Air Force.[11]
Freestyle record
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ "Newton native Wyatt Hendrickson secures NCAA championship". KWCH-DT. Associated Press. March 23, 2025.
- ^ Asmann, Savannah. (October 11, 2023). 2023 U23 U.S. Men’s Freestyle World Team Biographies. USA Wrestling. Retrieved March 28, 2025.
- ^ a b c d "Wyatt Hendrickson". Oklahoma State Cowboys. Archived from the original on March 24, 2025. Retrieved March 24, 2025.
- ^ Barber, Hayden (January 19, 2019). "Newton High wrestling star's next move is Air Force service". The Wichita Eagle. p. B1. Archived from the original on April 1, 2025. Retrieved March 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Wright, Scott (March 19, 2025). "Inside Wyatt Hendrickson's unique journey from Air Force to Oklahoma State wrestling". The Oklahoman.
- ^ "Hendrickson becomes first Air Force semifinalist in 20 years". Tulsa World. March 18, 2023. p. B3 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Waldrep, Tyler (January 3, 2025). "Hendrickson in pursuit of championship". Tulsa World. p. B1, B3 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Hill, Marcus (May 19, 2024). "Air Force Academy wrestler Wyatt Hendrickson transfers to Oklahoma State". Colorado Springs Gazette.
- ^ Wright, Scott (March 22, 2025). "How Wyatt Hendrickson upset Gable Steveson for heavyweight title at NCAA wrestling finals". The Oklahoman.
- ^ a b c Morse, Ben (March 23, 2025). "Wyatt Hendrickson stuns Olympic champion Gable Steveson to win wrestling national title, celebrates with President Trump". CNN.
- ^ Gaydos, Ryan (March 23, 2025). "Oklahoma State's Wyatt Hendrickson salutes Trump after shocking NCAA win, opens up about Air Force career". Fox News.
External links
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