A man who was on the wrestling team at Colorado State University in Fort Collins was recently killed after being hit by multiple cars while skateboarding, according to the Larimer County Coroner’s Office. Presiliano Maez, 21, was an honor student and went 12-5 as a sophomore wrestling for the CSU team during the 2019-20 season. A GoFundMe page was set up and raised over $40,000 to help cover funeral expenses.
“Pres made a tremendous impact on all those lucky enough to know him and leaves behind many grieving in sorrow and loss for a life tragically cut short,” Michael Encinias, the page organizer, wrote. Police said the collision happened less than a mile from CSU. Maez was skateboarding in the road when he was hit by multiple cars. He was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The coroner’s office said that Maez died of multiple blunt force injuries.
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“This is a tragic situation for everyone involved,” said Lt. Mike Trombley. “As the weather begins to get warmer, please remember there are an increased number of vehicles and pedestrians using the roadways and be cognizant of your surroundings.” Maez’s father, Eugene, spoke to KDVR in Denver and talked about the type of man he was.
“The little things he would do for people like defending kids that would get bullied in school, playing with kids, teaching them wrestling and he worked at the Boys and Girls Club, there was a lot to him,” Eugene said. “He was a gaming geek, a philosopher.” Eugene went on to talk about his son’s love for wrestling.
“He started wrestling at probably 3 years old, he was that little chubby sucker and wrestled all the way through one year of college,” Eugene said. “He went to regionals for club wrestling and he took the regional championship and was ranked number 10 in the nation.” A Colorado State spokesperson also reacted to the news of Maez.
“We are deeply saddened for all involved and impacted by this tragic accident, and we are particularly saddened by Presiliano’s death,” the spokesperson said as reported by 9 News. “The university community sends our sincere and heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.”
