An Iowa wrestler threw his medal in the garbage after taking second place at a Big Ten Tournament.
Matt McDonough entered the tournament as the number one seed in the 125 lb weight class and was going up against a wrestler that he had beaten twice in the past.
McDonough couldn’t pull out the victory, however, and lost to Jesse Delgado during the Championship match.
McDonough, like several of Iowa’s other top wrestlers, were disappointed with the results of the tournament.
Black Heart Gold Pants writes: “For the first time since 2006 (and just the third time since 1970), Iowa went home without a single individual conference champion.”
When you wrestle for one of the best teams in the country (Iowa has won 23 NCAA National Championships since 1975) and when you’re one of the best wrestlers in your division, it has to be hard to hold a second place medal. Still, most wrestler’s wouldn’t throw a second place medal in the garbage.
Sam Louwagie, a reporter for the Daily Iowan , posted an image of the medal on Twitter and has received a lot of feedback from wrestling fans. According to Louwagie, the discarded medal shows that Iowa just isn’t satisfied with second place.
Lots of response on McD’s medal last night. My take: It just shows his and the program’s mindset. Fed up with 2nd, not accepting it.
— Sam Louwagie (@SamLouwagie) March 11, 2013
In other words, Iowa has a Ricky Bobby mentality toward sports: “If you’re not first, you’re last.”
Of course, Iowa should probably finishing watching Talladega Nights so that they can fully understand the movie’s profound message.
Do you think the wrestler should have been proud of second place? Do you blame him for throwing his medal in the garbage?
