The view from section GG: A heavyweight’s fight

In 1974 the University of Iowa battled the University of Northern Iowa in a dual wrestling meet at the West Gymnasium on the UNI campus. Mark Onstott, a member of the UNI Athletic Hall of Fame as a swimmer, was there. “My favorite, non-swimming, athletic memory from UNI was the 1974 Iowa versus UNI wrestling meet. All of the swimmers came right out of practice, sat on the front row and cheered the guys on…It came down to the heavyweight match. Randy Omvig beat the Iowa guy for the win.”

In 1975, Randy Omvig would win the NCAA Division II heavyweight championship and help the Panthers win the team title. On December 22, 2005 Randy Omvig and his wife, Ellen, experienced the ultimate parental tragedy. Their son, SPC Joshua Omvig, committed suicide after completing an eleven-month deployment in Iraq.

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