THESE LOCAL BUSINESSES SUPPORT OUR ATHLETES
The Eardley Agency LLC Alton Male Athlete Of The Month: Alton Wrestler Ethan Kennedy Takes Fifth at Super 32
The East Elementary student tested himself against elite young wrestlers, delivering a standout pin during a tournament run built on months of preparation.
Oct 30, 2026 11:58 AM
Oct 31, 2026 1:24 PM
Listen to the story
ALTON — Ethan “Big Body” Kennedy, an East Elementary School student from Alton, placed fifth in the elementary 11U heavyweight division at the 2026 Super 32 wrestling tournament after months of training to compete against some of the country’s best young wrestlers.
Kennedy’s run included a 36-second pin against the wrestler ranked No. 2 in the country. The finish at Super 32, one of the nation’s toughest youth wrestling tournaments, added to his Adidas Nationals championship earlier this year, which he won without surrendering a point.
Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
Kennedy wrestles for The CLUB in Collinsville. He also trains under Ryan King at King Select Wrestling Academy and Michael Hare with Team Intensity. His preparation included wrestling practices, strength training, and conditioning.
Alongside his competition schedule, Kennedy creates wrestling content under the name BigBodyKennedy on TikTok and YouTube. His TikTok videos have generated more than 3 million views in 2026.
Ethan is an Eardley Agency LLC Male Athlete Of the Month for Alton.
Athlete of the Month is sponsored by
The videos feature interviews with Super 32 champions, Pan-American champions and world champions, as well as training footage and accounts of his own wrestling experiences. His sister, Ellie Kennedy, helps record the interviews and document his experiences.
At Super 32, Kennedy balanced competing with interviewing athletes and spending time with wrestlers he has long admired. He had opportunities to warm up with them, learn from them, and share jokes between competitions.
Photos accompanying this story show Kennedy with Melvin Miller and Keegan Bassett, both of whom have earned national and international wrestling honors.
Miller won his third high school Super 32 championship at the 2026 tournament. He is also a Fargo Junior freestyle national champion and represented the United States at the 2024 U17 World Championships, where he finished fifth.
Bassett won the 2025 U17 freestyle world championship at 45 kilograms, helping the United States capture the team title. He has also won a Fargo 16U freestyle national championship and U15 Pan-American gold medals in freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling.
More like this:
- Most Popular
- Top Stories
- Most Recent
