Listen on:
Donald McNeil (@realdeal_mcneil) grew up wrestling in Massachusetts and won a state championship his sophomore year of high school. But that summer, tragedy struck.
While wrestling in an off-season tournament, he was thrown on his head and fractured two vertebrae. He couldn’t move or feel his body. Donald was rushed to a trauma center and underwent surgery immediately. He spent over a month in the hospital and a year rehabilitating. But despite the traumatic experience, he returned to wrestling.
And he returned with a vengeance. Donald was a Prep National champion, where he secured the award for Most Pins in Least Amount of Time. He wound up wrestling Division I in college for Ryder University where he was a national qualifier and placed at the prestigious Midlands tournament. And Donald still competes at the senior level, where he has wrestled at international tournaments against the best wrestlers in the world.
I’ve heard Donald’s name a million times over the years and we have so many mutual friends so it was great to finally connect with him!