First U.S. soldier killed by enemy fire was a high school wrestler

<< Back to Articles
WLWT ChannelCincinnati.com ()
01/18/2002


The first U.S. soldier killed by enemy fire in Afghanistan had roots in the Tri-State.    Nathan Ross Chapman graduated from high school in Centerville , a suburb on the southeast side of Dayton, Ohio, WLWT Eyewitness News 5 reported.    Chapman was remembered as a hardworking high school athlete who planned for a career in the military.    He was a wrestler at Centerville High School before graduating in 1988 and joining the Army.    Chapman's wrestling coach, Rich Miller, said that he wasn't a remarkable athlete but he outworked everybody else.    Miller said that Chapman visited his classroom three years after graduation wearing his military uniform and telling him he was on his way to learn how to jump out of helicopters.    Chapman was killed Friday by small-arms fire. He was part of a U.S. team operating a few miles  from the Pakistan border.     Chapman was 31. He is survived by his wife, his two young children and his parents, WLWT reported.    Note: originally reported on Monday, January 7