Synergy Fitness

From family tragedy to WRESTLING TRIUMPTH TRIUMPTH

By Tony Bellissimo

Long Beach loves a hero. The city got one in the guise of Dunia Sibomana, who came to the United States in November, 2015 for surgery. A native of Congo, in Central Africa, he had been attacked by several wild chimpanzees as he and two family members played near Virunga National Park near his hometown. His family members were killed but Duniua, then 6, survived but was left with life-altering facial injuries. His lips were torn off, his cheek was lacerated and he suffered muscle damage that made it hard to swallow or talk. Dunia underwent more than a dozen surgeries, the first in 2016 at Stony Brook University's Children's Hospital to restore his appearance and facial functions. Since he came to Long Beach, his fellow students, teachers and neighbors rallied around him. And now he’s found a home here, where he truly has settled in. And has captured the attention of the city. During a Sunday afternoon in early February, at Nassau Community College, Dunia, an eighth grader, captured the Nassau Division I 102-pound title with a 14-2 major decision over Massapequa’s Carlos Arango. The Long Beach City Council presented him with a plaque and he got a standing ovation from members of the crowd at City Hall at a February ceremony. The Long Beach Police Department also got involved, giving Dunia on a tour of the station house with Police Commissioner Ron Walsh. Duia had never entered a classroom or spoken English until his first host, Jennifer Crean, enrolled him in a Hauppauge school a month before his initial surgery. Now he is an Honor Roll student at Long Beach

chimpanzees as he and two family His family members were killed but left with life-altering facial injuries. dozen surgeries, the first in 2016 at Stony Brook University's Children's Hospital to restore his appearance

Middle School — besides Nassau County wrestling champion. He began wrestling competitively four years ago in the Gladiators youth program, coached by Miguel Rodriguez, the Long Beach Middle School coach and a longtime varsity assistant. Rodriguez and his wife, Marissa, met Dunia in the summer of 2016 at a Skudin Surf camp, and they bonded almost instantly. In 2020, the Rodriguezes began the adoption process to make Dunia a member of their family. “He has a ton of energy,” Rodriguez said. “I coach soccer, wrestling and track, and he always went everywhere with me. He’s competitive in everything he does.”

Karen Millindorf/Herald Left page: Long Beach wrestler Dunia Sibomana captured the Nassau County wrestling championship in February.

Photos: Ray Nelson/Herald Top photo: Sibomana defeated Mason Mangialino of Comsewogue en route to his championship. Bottom photo: Dunia Sibomana became Long Beach’s 17th state wrestling champion earlier this year.