Former Olympic wrestler and MMA fighter Ben Askren has undergone a double lung transplant and is now recovering after a severe bout of pneumonia landed him in a Wisconsin hospital. In a social media video posted Wednesday, Askren shared that he has little memory of what happened during the month-long period from late May to early July. His wife, Amy, had previously revealed that he was placed on a ventilator in June and added to the lung transplant waiting list on June 24.
“I have no recollection, zero idea of what happened,” Askren said, describing the past six weeks. “I just read through my wife’s journal. It’s like watching a movie. It’s unbelievable. I actually died four times, with my heart stopping for about 20 seconds each time.”
During this 45-day ordeal, Askren lost around 50 pounds. He also spoke about the overwhelming support he felt from loved ones during his illness, saying it felt like he had his own funeral.
Askren, now 40, hails from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, but has mostly lived in Wisconsin, where he operates a youth wrestling academy. He won consecutive NCAA wrestling titles at Missouri and represented the U.S. at the 2008 Summer Olympics before transitioning to mixed martial arts. He competed with organizations such as Bellator, ONE Championship, and the UFC.
He retired from MMA after losing to Demian Maia in October 2019, finishing with a professional record of 19 wins, 2 losses, and 1 no contest. Askren briefly returned to combat sports in April 2021 for a boxing match against social media personality Jake Paul, which Paul won by technical knockout in the first round.
