Iowa wrestler Austin Roberts tragically dies after collapsing at tournament; GoFundMe donation page set up for family

Photo of Austin Roberts (black singlet) by Jeff Budlong, Sioux City Journal

A standout Spencer wrestler died Saturday night after collapsing earlier in the day during a championship match at his hometown tournament.


Austin Roberts, a returning state medalist, fell to the mat after a stoppage in action in the final minute of the Spencer Invitational’s 220-pound title match. The Spencer senior was wrestling Sioux Center’s Ko Kieft, an all-state football player who recently accepted a scholarship to play at Minnesota.


“There was about 30 seconds left and the score was tied and they went out of bounds,” Sioux Center coach Aaron Schmidt said. “We came back to the center to get reset and we got set and the Roberts boy asked for injury time and couldn’t seem to quite catch his breath.


“Then injury time was up and there was a good, classy exchange at the end of the match and we were hoping he was all right. At that point, he seemed to just be unable to catch his breath.”


Schmidt said an emergency response team tended to Roberts at the tournament. He passed away later Saturday night at Spencer Hospital, according to a hospital spokesperson.

Full article by Andy Hamilton at the Des Moines Register

GoFundMe donation page to help support the Roberts family