Echemendía was born in Cabaigúan, Cuba. He started training gymnastics when he was four years old but ended up leaving the sport at the age of eight, following his father and brother's steps to start wrestling instead.[4]
He attended and won his first U14 National Championship in 2012 and since then, he grabbed titles in U15, U17, U20 and U23. After a third-place finish in 2017, he reached the finals of the 2018 Senior National Tournament and then, while preparing for the U20 Nationals and Pan-American Championships with the U20 Cuban Pan American team in Guatemala, Echemendía defected from Cuba, sneaking away from his coaches and teammates to cross Guatemala, Belize and Mexico and finally get to the United States late in the year.[5]
Career in the United States
High school
2018–2019
Echemendía arrived to Tucson, Arizona in late 2018, where he attended Sunnyside High School as a senior, for one semester. He started competing in folkstyle shortly after the arrival and dominated on his way to a Division II state title at 152 pounds, compiling an unbeaten record of 22 wins and no losses.[5] He graduated as a 2018–19 student.[6]
Once the season ended, Echemendia went back to freestyle, and after winning the AZ state freestyle tournament, he claimed gold in both freestyle and Greco-Roman at the U20 Fargo National Championships.[7] He also beat Josh Saunders at Who's Number One in a freestyle bout.[8]
Making his collegiate wrestling debut, Echemendía was defeated by his teammate Dylan D'Emilio at the OSU wrestle-offs in January.[14] However, the starting spot went back–and–forth throughout the regular season.[15] In February, Tom Ryan decided to start D'Emilio for the post-season, as Echemendía was battling an injury.[16] He finished the season with a 4–1 record, with his lone loss coming in hands of top–ranked Jaydin Eierman from Iowa.[17]
In the next season, Echemendía also failed to take the varsity spot, losing to Jordan Decatur at the OSU wrestle-offs in October.[18] He then decided to redshirt, and went 2–0 at an open tournament in November.[19]
2022
After legal issues, Echemendía entered the NCAA transfer portal in March.[20] During his sophomore campaign, he competed unattached, wrestling at five open tournaments and winning three of them between late 2022 and early 2023.[21]
2023
Echemendía then transferred to the Iowa State University, and in October, he defeated teammates Carter Fousek and NCAA qualifier Casey Swiderski to take the varsity spot at 149 pounds.[22][23] After a 2–0 stint at the weight class, Echemendía dropped down to 141 pounds, improving to a 16–4 record and claiming a seventh-place finish at the Cliff Keen Invitational during regular season.[24] In the post-season, Echemendia claimed the Big 12 Conference before becoming an All-American with a fifth-place finish at the NCAA tournament, closing out the year at 23–6.[25][2]
Controversies
Altercation with his wife
On November 10, 2021, it was announced that Echemendía had been arrested due to an altercation with his wife, Lily Echemendía, in which he allegedly grabbed her by the neck with both hands until rendering her unconscious, leading to him being charged with felonious assault.[26] He entered a guilty plea to a misdemeanor charge and was sentenced to time served (four days).[27]
Personal life
Echemendía's life story has been featured in documentaries by FloSports and the Big Ten Network.[28] Since defecting from Cuba in 2018, Echemendía, was not able to see his family until 2023, when he visited his native country.[29]
