Oak Park police investigate viral video of high school wrestler sucker punching opponent
CHICAGO (CBS) -- It's a violent and unexpected end to a wrestling match, and video from it is going viral.
In a clip was captured by The Wrestling Spot at a meet at Oak Park River Forest High School.
CBS 2's Suzanne Le Mignot is speaking with the wrestler who was hit, and his parents, about that punch.
The 14-year-old who was sucker punched in the video said he's doing better and recovering. He said he doesn't want this moment caught on video, to diminish his achievements.
Video from The Wrestling Spot shows 14-year-old Cooper Corder extending his hand to his opponent Hafid Alicea, after Alicea lost their freestyle match, 14-2. As Alicea extends his hand, pretending to get ready to shake, he punches Corder in the face instead, deviating his septum.
"I didn't want to retaliate, obviously, and I didn't want to get hit again," said high school wrestler Cooper Corder. "So as soon as it happened, my first reaction is 'I gotta ball up. I got to get away from what just happened."
"I didn't really understand until he was on the ground," said his mother Jillian Hill. "I didn't really understand until he was on the ground. And there was probably a three or four second delay of my brain just processing what just happened."
Hill said she immediately ran over to him as he sat in the fetal position, shaking.
The teens were taking part in the Beat the Streets Chicago tournament on April 8 in Oak Park. The organization is dedicated to teaching wrestling and life skills to young people. The teens were from visiting clubs outside the nonprofit's program. In a statement Executive Director Mike Powell said:
"We are very disappointed that this happened at one of our tournaments, which are meant to provide young people with opportunities to grow and compete in a positive, safe environment. We are relieved to know that the young man injured is recovering and we have taken the necessary actions to let the authorities determine next steps."
Corder is a highly decorated young wrestler, having won more than 500 matches since the age of four. He and his mother said they don't want the now viral video, seen more than two million times, to take away from his accomplishments and the dedication he has for wrestling.
"Anybody can get knocked down. Anybody can go through a hard time. But it's your response to that and it's your ability to move forward," Hill said. "And that's probably one of the things that makes me most proud of Cooper. He has handled this well. He's handled so much better than most adults would have."
"At these next local, couple of tournaments, I'm going to be known as the kid who got punched," Corder said. "But I don't want that to oversee all of my accomplishments. I would love to wrestle at a Division I level and accomplish other things I want to in life, like Olympic gold medals and all of that. But I never want to be seen for being at a high level just because I got the exposure for being punched. I want to be seen for all the work that I do."
CBS 2 was unable to find Hafid Alicea and his family for comment. The tournament was held in Oak Park and police there are investigating.
"On Saturday, April 8, just after 4 p.m., the Oak Park Police Department was called to Oak Park-River Forest High School fieldhouse in response to an aggravated battery that occurred during a wrestling event, the Beat the Streets Chicago Freestyle & Greco Tournament hosted by USA Wrestling.
Oak Park police said Hafid Alicea told officers "he struck his opponent because he was angry that he had lost the match."
The offender and family also relayed that they would cooperate with any future investigation.
"After reflection, the family of the victim followed up with the Oak Park Police Department and indicated a desire to pursue criminal charges. The investigation is ongoing and updates on the matter will be provided as available," the Village of Oak Park said in a statement.
The incident also has been referred to USA Wrestling, the governing body for amateur wrestling in the United States, and USA Wrestling/Illinois.
