Illinois youth wrestler who punched rival following loss is ‘cited for ASSAULT ‘ after admitting to officers he threw the cheap shot because ‘he was angry’ over defeat
- The incident between both eighth graders took place at a tournament in Illinois
- Other reports have stated that the boy who was hit would be pressing charges
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
An Illinois youth wrestler who sucker punched his rival after losing their fight has been cited by cops following the violent attack.
Hafid Alicea, 14, was issued the citation by the Oak Park Police Department on Thursday after admitting to officers he punched his opponent because ‘he was angry that he had lost the match,’ according to TMZ.
It was recently reported that the parents of Cooper Corder, the young man who was on the receiving end of the punch, had decided to press charges.
The incident occurred in Oak Park, Illinois, during a third-place, 125–128-pound match at this year’s edition of the Beat the Street Developmental FS tournament.
Corder, representing SPAR Academy, defeated Alicea, of Maine West High School by a score of 14-2, according to TMZ Sports. The unexpected blow came after the match ended, when both competitors were set to shake hands, and leaving parents and other young athletes shocked.
The incident occurred in Oak Park, Illinois, during a third-place, 125-128 pound match
Hafid Alicia (right) was pulled off the court after throwing a punch at his victorious opponent
As Cooper, who is in his final year of middle school, wearing an orange singlet, went to shake hands with Alicea, who wore blue he was on the receiving end of a right hand that was thrown with the perfection of a boxer rather than a wrestler that send him straight to the floor.
One woman – who may have been Corder’s mother – could be heard screaming, ‘What the f**k!’ as she rushed over to check on the crumpled Corder.
Corder seems to have come out of the incident a lot better than initially feared, only suffering a nose injury.
But it is understood he will have to wear a face mask during his next matches.
‘He is making the best of the situation and is already back to training,’ said SPAR Academy founder Justin Pearch.
‘As you may know, wrestling matches can get heated but nothing leading up to the punch would give cause to such bad decision-making on the opponent’s part.
‘It’s not tolerated in our sport and Spar Wrestling will never condone that behavior.’
Maine West High School did not immediately respond to an email for comment.
Cooper Corder is a two-time state wrestling champion, who was punched by his opponent
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