19-year-old California college wrestler dies after falling at Yosemite National Park
by Brad Matthews · The Washington TimesA college wrestler died after falling while hiking with friends near Illilouette Fall in Yosemite National Park, 200 miles east of San Francisco.
Ryan George, 19, visited the national park on Sunday with friends before purportedly slipping and falling to his death, according to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.
Park rangers found his body in a canyon roughly 400 feet below the trail that he fell from, according to Fox News.
Mr. George was a member of the wrestling team at Santa Rosa Junior College in Northern California.
Mr. George’s sister Jaida George told the Press Democrat, “He was always playing and wrestling when he was a kid, so when he started wrestling, everyone knew. He really just loved to play. Literally, it just matches him. He was just so loving.”
In a statement on social media, the Santa Rosa Junior College wrestling team said Mr. George “was one of the most genuine, positive people you could ever meet. He had this way of lighting up a room, making you feel welcome, and bringing out the best in everyone around him. Always smiling, always encouraging, always full of life. He was an amazing leader and wrestler, but more than that, he was an amazing human — kind, loyal, funny, and the kind of friend everyone wishes they had in their life.”
Yosemite National Park has not publicly commented on the incident due to a “standard policy” of not making statements on active death investigations, according to Fox News.
Contact the author
Brad Matthews
Follow author updates Follow Click to follow. Manage followed authors