Brandon slay - dick risenhoover award 1998, 2000
Brandon Slay - Wrestling
Why Honored: In April 2000, Slay earned a spot in the finals of the U.S. Olympic Trials in Dallas. Slay won the trials and was the first Texas wrestler to qualify for the Olympics.
At Sydney, Slay scored one of the biggest upsets in Olympic history in the second round: he won 4-3 against Russia’s Bouvaissa Saitey, the defending Olympic gold medalist. Slay then won two more matches to face Germany’s Alexander Leopold in the gold medal match. Slay lost 4-0 and took the silver.
Two weeks later, Leiopold failed his drug test and was stripped of his medal. Slay earned his gold on November 15, 2000 live, on NBC’s Today Show in New York City.
