Olympic Gold Medalist Jeff Blatnick Dead at 55

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Dave Lucas

Published October 24, 2012 at 4:55 PM EDT

Olympic Gold Medalist Jeff Blatnick has died following complications from heart surgery - WAMC's Dave Lucas has more...

Blatnick passed away due to cardio-pulmonary arrest at Ellis Hospital on Wednesday.

A 1975 graduate of Niskayuna High, Blatnick survived a bout with Hodgkin's Disease , but went on win the gold in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. The cancer came back and forced his retirement, but his involvement in wrestling continued as a coach and commentator.

Blatnick is a member of the USA Wrestling Hall of Fame: he was key to the growth of Mixed Martial Arts. He helped formulate the Unified Rules of MMA and was one of the sport's top judges. He volunteeered as varsity assistant coach at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School.

Capital Region News

Dave Lucas

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.

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