For Nico Hernandez, parade, cheers and a WSU scholarship

Nico Hernandez sat quietly on the stage in the North High School gym, a shy smile flashing occasionally, as speaker after speaker took the microphone to praise his work ethic, his character – and his success in winning an Olympic bronze medal in boxing earlier this month.

The honors piled up: a parade in which hundreds of people escorted him to the school. A raucous celebration at North High filled with cheers and chants. A four-year scholarship to Wichita State University. The key to the city. He even received written tributes from North High (and American) greats Barry Sanders and Lynette Woodard.

When he finally got the mic, Hernandez, 20, thanked his family, coaches, supporters and the people of Wichita for the crucial support he needed to succeed. Even after he left for Rio de Janeiro, he said, he felt buoyed by the good wishes and hopes from back home as he struggled with challenges and tough competitors. 

“When I was in Rio, watching back home on Facebook and the news, I saw everybody supported me,” Hernandez said. “I didn’t want to lose in front of my hometown or my family. So without you guys, I probably wouldn’t have won, because I didn’t want to get embarrassed in front of you guys.”

He said he knows people are wondering about his future. He said he and his father, Lewis Hernandez, are still thinking about that. 

But Saturday was a chance to soak up a little love from the crowd.

“It’s really overwhelming,” said Lewis Hernandez, Nico’s father and coach. “We’re really thankful for the crowd that came out, proud of Wichita and the United States as well. This is a whole different level, something we’ve never seen before. It’s awesome.”

Several of the speakers detailed what it is about Nico Hernandez that makes him different from most people. 

Kevin Pedigo, Hernandez’s strength trainer at the gym, spoke about being amazed by his obvious natural talent but, more importantly, by how Hernandez took that talent and worked and worked to improve it. He was relentless in his training. 

Pedigo said that when they started working together, Hernandez weighed 103 pounds. He put on 15 pounds of muscle. He went from being able to bench press 85 pounds to 185 pounds – in three months.

“Everybody talks about his heart. I wish you could look at his work ethic, his family and his faith in Jesus Christ,” Pedigo said.

Lewis Hernandez detailed how his son was able to overcome adversity in the weeks leading up to his fights.

He had suffered a concussion and then been in a car wreck that interrupted his training in the two months before he left for Rio. Then, on his first day in Rio, he called his father: He had sprained his ankle badly while he was out running. He couldn’t walk on it. 

“I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, we’re done,’ ” Lewis Hernandez recalled. “We did a lot of praying, and God walked us through it. Eight days later, they wrapped his ankle and he competed.”

At the event in Wichita, Marche Fleming-Randle, assistant to the president for diversity at WSU, spoke glowingly of Nico Hernandez’s impact on the community. The university planned to plant a tree in Hernandez’s name. 

And then she sprang the kicker: The school was offering him a four-year free ride to WSU. 

Later, Fleming-Randle explained that the university wanted to honor his achievement and bring in a student so respected in the local Hispanic community – although, at this point, it’s far from clear whether Hernandez would interrupt his boxing career to attend WSU. But, she said, the offer doesn’t have a time limit.

“We’re excited to make him a Shocker, whenever he’s ready,” she said.

His achievement has meant a lot to Wichita’s Hispanic community, and to the city in general.

Julio Gutierrez knew Hernandez somewhat in middle school and was surprised by his emergence as an international boxer.

“I knew he boxed back when he was in middle school, but I didn’t think he would get this big, get this much attention,” he said. 

“Bringing a medal back from the Olympics was amazing,” said Robert Jaramillo, who watched the parade pass by. “Even though it was only bronze, it is like gold to us.”

Veronica Ibarra watched the parade on 21st Street. 

“We feel very proud that Nico is from here and representing Hispanics and Wichita and the USA,” she said through her daughter, Vanessa Sanchez.

Dan Voorhis: 316-268-6577, @danvoorhis

This story was originally published August 27, 2016 at 1:33 PM with the headline "For Nico Hernandez, parade, cheers and a WSU scholarship."