SESKER COLUMN: Joe Heskett is a class act all the way
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by Craig Sesker
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - One of the most rewarding parts of the 2007 season was having the opportunity to get to know Joe Heskett on a personal level.
I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to tell his inspirational story when I wrote a feature about Joe for our magazine, USA Wrestler, earlier this year.
Joe was raised in Ohio by his grandmother, Evelyn Nye, and they have developed a very close relationship. She had an excellent influence on a kid who could have easily followed the wrong path with his parents not around to raise him.
But Joe Heskett became a model young man. He excelled in school, he never missed curfew, he didn't smoke and he didn't drink. He poured himself into athletics and academics, and became one of the top young wrestlers in the country. He was a three-time Ohio state champion, a four-time NCAA All-American at Iowa State and placed fifth at his first World Championships a couple weeks ago in Baku, Azerbaijan.
That's why the phone call I received Tuesday afternoon seemed so unfair. It was Joe Heskett on the other end of the line. At first, it seemed like a typical conversation where he was upbeat and friendly as we made small talk. But then he gave me the stunning and jolting news that his wrestling career was over because of a heart condition that almost took his life. How could this happen to someone just 29 years old who was in peak physical condition?
Joe called to talk with me about helping with the release that Danielle Warner of the Ohio State sports information office was putting together. Joe is an assistant coach for the Buckeyes. He was preparing to have surgery later that day, and amazingly, he was trying to make sure the story of what was happening with him would clearly explain what had transpired. It did as Danielle did a great job detailing what happened in her story.
As Joe was talking to me Tuesday about nearly losing his life, he asked me how I was doing and how my trip home from Baku went. He told me he had great respect for my ability as a writer. That's the kind of person he is. Very selfless. It was unbelievable how well he was handling a very difficult and very scary situation.
I told Joe just to focus on getting better and not worry about anything else. But Joe's a person who does everything the right way and he laughed as he said he wanted his "wrestling eulogy" done the right way.
As an Iowa native and a wrestling journalist, I followed Joe's career closely at Iowa State. He became one of the best Cyclones in history by finishing third, second, second and first at the NCAA Championships from 1999-2002. Joe's great accomplishments often were overshadowed by the best wrestler in NCAA history. Joe competed at ISU during the same four years Cael Sanderson made history by winning four NCAA titles and compiling a 159-0 record. The dynamic duo of Sanderson and Heskett was a joy for fans to watch. Both wrestlers conducted themselves with class.
I also saw Joe continually wrestle well when he started to compete internationally, but he was stuck behind a very good wrestler at 74 kg/163 lbs. in two-time World bronze medalist Joe Williams.
Joe Heskett kept working, and finally this year, he broke through. He won the U.S. Nationals for the first time and followed by winning the U.S. World Team Trials to earn his first trip to the World Championships. It was a memorable and emotional scene this past June in Las Vegas when Joe walked over to hug his family after he filled a big void in his career by making a World Team.
I started to get to know Joe as we worked together on stories after he won U.S. Nationals this year. I marveled at how well he conducted himself, and how smooth, polished and articulate he was with the media. And I remember having to Google some of the big words he used from his vast vocabulary to make sure I had quoted him correctly. The words always fit perfectly in the context he was using them.
Whenever I would run into Joe at practice at the U.S. Olympic Training Center or anywhere else, he was quick to come over, flash a smile, say hello and shake my hand. Being around people like that makes my job enjoyable. Joe is a very bright, intelligent, charismatic, driven young man with an outgoing, infectious personality.
One of my funnier stories from this year's Pan American Games came after the event when we were sitting around in the airport in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and waiting to catch our flight. Joe and Tommy Rowlands came up to me and asked me if I had any Brazilian currency - called Real - left on me because they were hungry and they ran out of Brazilian money. I was out of Real as well, and we shared a good laugh about that. They eventually figured out a way to get something to eat. Hungry wrestlers are not much fun to be around.
Joe also was quick to shake his head and give me a hard time about wearing an Iowa Hawkeyes polo shirt on the way home from Rio. I guess you have to expect that from a Cyclone.
Joe introduced me to his wife, Tara, following the Pan American Games when I ran into them at a restaurant near Copacabana Beach. I met Joe's grandmother when I ran into her and Joe's wife in the lobby of our hotel at the World Championships. It's easy to see that family means everything to them and they are a very close-knit group. And they're very proud of Joe.
I have no doubt that Joe will continue to succeed in life as his competitive wrestling career ends. He has his master's degree in educational leadership with an emphasis in athletic administration. He was a four-time Academic All-American at Iowa State. That's something his grandmother is quick to point out - she is more proud of his work in the classroom than what he did on the mat during his Cyclone career.
One of the most impressive moments I've ever seen in nearly 20 years as a journalist came at the end of an interview I did with Joe after he placed fifth at the World Championships last month in Azerbaijan.
Joe had the lead late in the third period of his semifinal match against eventual World champion Makhach Murtazaliev of Russia. Joe was 20 seconds away from a spot in the finals before he was unable to hold off Murtazaliev and lost the match.
Joe followed by dropping his bronze-medal match to place fifth, and simply did not look like himself. He looked uncharacteristically sluggish and now it is easy to see why with his medical issues. Joe gave it everything he had, like he always did. Nobody could fault his effort.
What impressed me most about Joe was when we were wrapping up an interview a few minutes after he lost his final match. He was very upfront and candid about his performance, and made no excuses. I told him he was a class act for the way he handled a tough finish to the biggest tournament of his life.
Joe then called to me as I was walking away and said, "I didn't win a gold medal here, but I have two gold medals waiting for me at home."
Joe was referring to his two young daughters, Olivia and Ava, who were back in Columbus, Ohio, waiting for their daddy to come home.
With the surgical procedure Joe had done Tuesday, it appears that he will be able to go on and live a normal life and watch his daughters grow up. He's done wrestling, but he has so much more to live for and so much to offer. And knowing Joe, he will continue to make a big impact in numerous other areas and facets of his life. He wouldn't have it any other way. He's a man of great character - a model for how our athletes should carry themselves and represent our country.
It is unfortunate that Joe won't have a chance to compete at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. He had the inside track on making the U.S. team after the strong season he just put together. But he did fill a big void in his career by making a U.S. World Team. He also qualified the U.S. for the Olympics in freestyle at 74 kilos with his top-five performance at the Worlds. By qualifying the weight class, Joe paved the way for a guy like Casey Cunningham, Ramico Blackmon or Donny Pritzlaff to win an Olympic medal for the U.S. next year at 74 kilos.
Joe didn't win the gold medal he had worked so hard for. But Joe Heskett definitely is a champion in my book.
I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to tell his inspirational story when I wrote a feature about Joe for our magazine, USA Wrestler, earlier this year.
Joe was raised in Ohio by his grandmother, Evelyn Nye, and they have developed a very close relationship. She had an excellent influence on a kid who could have easily followed the wrong path with his parents not around to raise him.
But Joe Heskett became a model young man. He excelled in school, he never missed curfew, he didn't smoke and he didn't drink. He poured himself into athletics and academics, and became one of the top young wrestlers in the country. He was a three-time Ohio state champion, a four-time NCAA All-American at Iowa State and placed fifth at his first World Championships a couple weeks ago in Baku, Azerbaijan.
That's why the phone call I received Tuesday afternoon seemed so unfair. It was Joe Heskett on the other end of the line. At first, it seemed like a typical conversation where he was upbeat and friendly as we made small talk. But then he gave me the stunning and jolting news that his wrestling career was over because of a heart condition that almost took his life. How could this happen to someone just 29 years old who was in peak physical condition?
Joe called to talk with me about helping with the release that Danielle Warner of the Ohio State sports information office was putting together. Joe is an assistant coach for the Buckeyes. He was preparing to have surgery later that day, and amazingly, he was trying to make sure the story of what was happening with him would clearly explain what had transpired. It did as Danielle did a great job detailing what happened in her story.
As Joe was talking to me Tuesday about nearly losing his life, he asked me how I was doing and how my trip home from Baku went. He told me he had great respect for my ability as a writer. That's the kind of person he is. Very selfless. It was unbelievable how well he was handling a very difficult and very scary situation.
I told Joe just to focus on getting better and not worry about anything else. But Joe's a person who does everything the right way and he laughed as he said he wanted his "wrestling eulogy" done the right way.
As an Iowa native and a wrestling journalist, I followed Joe's career closely at Iowa State. He became one of the best Cyclones in history by finishing third, second, second and first at the NCAA Championships from 1999-2002. Joe's great accomplishments often were overshadowed by the best wrestler in NCAA history. Joe competed at ISU during the same four years Cael Sanderson made history by winning four NCAA titles and compiling a 159-0 record. The dynamic duo of Sanderson and Heskett was a joy for fans to watch. Both wrestlers conducted themselves with class.
I also saw Joe continually wrestle well when he started to compete internationally, but he was stuck behind a very good wrestler at 74 kg/163 lbs. in two-time World bronze medalist Joe Williams.
Joe Heskett kept working, and finally this year, he broke through. He won the U.S. Nationals for the first time and followed by winning the U.S. World Team Trials to earn his first trip to the World Championships. It was a memorable and emotional scene this past June in Las Vegas when Joe walked over to hug his family after he filled a big void in his career by making a World Team.
I started to get to know Joe as we worked together on stories after he won U.S. Nationals this year. I marveled at how well he conducted himself, and how smooth, polished and articulate he was with the media. And I remember having to Google some of the big words he used from his vast vocabulary to make sure I had quoted him correctly. The words always fit perfectly in the context he was using them.
Whenever I would run into Joe at practice at the U.S. Olympic Training Center or anywhere else, he was quick to come over, flash a smile, say hello and shake my hand. Being around people like that makes my job enjoyable. Joe is a very bright, intelligent, charismatic, driven young man with an outgoing, infectious personality.
One of my funnier stories from this year's Pan American Games came after the event when we were sitting around in the airport in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and waiting to catch our flight. Joe and Tommy Rowlands came up to me and asked me if I had any Brazilian currency - called Real - left on me because they were hungry and they ran out of Brazilian money. I was out of Real as well, and we shared a good laugh about that. They eventually figured out a way to get something to eat. Hungry wrestlers are not much fun to be around.
Joe also was quick to shake his head and give me a hard time about wearing an Iowa Hawkeyes polo shirt on the way home from Rio. I guess you have to expect that from a Cyclone.
Joe introduced me to his wife, Tara, following the Pan American Games when I ran into them at a restaurant near Copacabana Beach. I met Joe's grandmother when I ran into her and Joe's wife in the lobby of our hotel at the World Championships. It's easy to see that family means everything to them and they are a very close-knit group. And they're very proud of Joe.
I have no doubt that Joe will continue to succeed in life as his competitive wrestling career ends. He has his master's degree in educational leadership with an emphasis in athletic administration. He was a four-time Academic All-American at Iowa State. That's something his grandmother is quick to point out - she is more proud of his work in the classroom than what he did on the mat during his Cyclone career.
One of the most impressive moments I've ever seen in nearly 20 years as a journalist came at the end of an interview I did with Joe after he placed fifth at the World Championships last month in Azerbaijan.
Joe had the lead late in the third period of his semifinal match against eventual World champion Makhach Murtazaliev of Russia. Joe was 20 seconds away from a spot in the finals before he was unable to hold off Murtazaliev and lost the match.
Joe followed by dropping his bronze-medal match to place fifth, and simply did not look like himself. He looked uncharacteristically sluggish and now it is easy to see why with his medical issues. Joe gave it everything he had, like he always did. Nobody could fault his effort.
What impressed me most about Joe was when we were wrapping up an interview a few minutes after he lost his final match. He was very upfront and candid about his performance, and made no excuses. I told him he was a class act for the way he handled a tough finish to the biggest tournament of his life.
Joe then called to me as I was walking away and said, "I didn't win a gold medal here, but I have two gold medals waiting for me at home."
Joe was referring to his two young daughters, Olivia and Ava, who were back in Columbus, Ohio, waiting for their daddy to come home.
With the surgical procedure Joe had done Tuesday, it appears that he will be able to go on and live a normal life and watch his daughters grow up. He's done wrestling, but he has so much more to live for and so much to offer. And knowing Joe, he will continue to make a big impact in numerous other areas and facets of his life. He wouldn't have it any other way. He's a man of great character - a model for how our athletes should carry themselves and represent our country.
It is unfortunate that Joe won't have a chance to compete at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. He had the inside track on making the U.S. team after the strong season he just put together. But he did fill a big void in his career by making a U.S. World Team. He also qualified the U.S. for the Olympics in freestyle at 74 kilos with his top-five performance at the Worlds. By qualifying the weight class, Joe paved the way for a guy like Casey Cunningham, Ramico Blackmon or Donny Pritzlaff to win an Olympic medal for the U.S. next year at 74 kilos.
Joe didn't win the gold medal he had worked so hard for. But Joe Heskett definitely is a champion in my book.
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