Victoria Will/AP In this Feb. 14, 2018 photo, actor Chadwick Boseman poses for a portrait in New York to promote his film, "Black Panther." Boseman, who played Black icons Jackie Robinson and James Brown before finding fame as the regal Black Panther in the Marvel cinematic universe, has died of cancer. His representative says Boseman died Friday, Aug. 28, 2020 in Los Angeles after a four-year battle with colon cancer. He was 43.<doc-sep>Tough Enough III winners John Hennigan (left) and Matt Cappotelli (right) pose for a photo Former WWE star Matt Cappotelli died Friday after a long battle with brain cancer, his wife, Lindsay Cappotelli, announced in an Instagram post. The 38-year-old Cappotelli was the co-winner of Tough Enough III, a WWE-affiliated reality show which aired on MTV, in 2003. After winning the competition with John Hennigan, who went on to wrestle in WWE under the monikers "Johnny Nitro" and John Morrison, Cappotelli went to Ohio Valley Wrestling, a WWE development territory, to further craft his talent. Cappotelli later became the OVW Heavyweight Champion, but he was diagnosed with brain cancer in February 2006. The diagnosis forced to step away from the ring, and most of his brain tumor was removed in a successful surgery in May 2007. However, the former wrestler announced that he had grade IV glioblastoma multiforme, the most aggressive form of brain cancer, in July 2017. Lindsay Cappotelli had been documenting her husband's battle on Instagram since his cancer returned last year. "I have shared this journey with you all throughout this last year in hopes that it will inspire and encourage all of you who are going through trials, or will go through them, Lindsay Cappotelli wrote last week. "Because at some point, we all do. But instead of questioning and asking, God “why”, there is so much more peace if you choose to trust and instead, ask what God wants to do in you and through you in that situation." Cappotelli was born in Norwich, N.Y., and he was a 1998 graduate of Caledonia-Mumford High School, where he played football. Cappotelli attended Western Michigan, and he also participated on the football team for the Broncos. The wrestler had been living in Louisville, Ky., where he worked at the Louisville Athletic Club (Westport) as the Director of Personal Training and a trainer at Ohio Valley Wrestling, per his obituary. A funeral service for Cappotelli will be held at the Fireside Room at Southeast Christian Church on July 3. His family announced it was accepting memorial donations for Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure, a nonprofit organization that conducts research on brain cancer and treatments. The family will also donate memorial funds to Boston University’s Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) Center, one of the leading research organizations in the fight against the brain disease that has afflicted many former athletes. "He had a passion for his family, football, pro wrestling, Jeeps, lifting weights and pizza," Cappotelli's obituary stated. "His greatest passion of all was loving and helping people in the name of Jesus. "Matt is survived by his wife of 12 years, Lindsay (Seeders) Cappotelli; parents Gary and Martha Cappotelli, brother, Adam Cappotelli (Stephanie), grandmother Josephine Cappotelli, nephews Noah and Caleb Cappotelli, niece Celeste Seeders and mother-in-law Theresa Guthrie. Matt is also survived by a host of family, friends and his fur-baby Asher."<doc-sep>Former WWE star Matt Cappotelli died on Friday after a long battle with cancer at the age of 38. His wife Lindsey announced the news on a Facebook group dedicated to the former wrestler. "Hey Team Capp […] I've been struggling with what to say and how to say this, and I'll probably end up rambling, but here goes," she wrote. "Today my love-my strong, sweet, beautiful love-took his last breath at 3:30 a.m. and went Home to be with Jesus […] exactly one year after his brain surgery. You think you can be prepared for this when you know it's coming, but you just can't. The only person whose comfort I want right now is the one who can't give it to me." A former football player for Western Michigan University, the New York state native got his first major break in wrestling when he secured a WWE contract after winning Tough Enough III. Several appearances at WWE shows followed, including Monday Night Raw, Sunday Night Heat and WWE Velocity. On June 27 last year, a blog post written by Lindsey had first revealed her husband had been diagnosed with cancer. Cappotelli had suffered from brain tumor more than a decade ago and was regularly screened. He underwent an MRI screening in February last year but only four months later he began suffering from serious headaches, which the doctor confirmed were the sign the cancer had returned. While it was not clear what kind of tumor Cappotelli had, it was suggested Glioblastoma was a possibility, which was described as the "worst case scenario" by the doctors. "If it was Glioblastoma and Matt chose not to have surgery or chemotherapy, he would only have about a month to live," Cappotelli's wife added. Lindsey, who had married Matt in 2006, explained that even with surgery treatment Cappotelli would have around six months to live. He underwent surgery on June 29 last year to remove 90 percent of the tumor, but the procedure confirmed that he had grade 4 Glioblastoma. Last month, following consultations with his neuro-oncologist, Cappottelli decide to discontinue medical interventions for the tumor. "Throughout all of this, Matt and I really never discussed death," his wife added. "A part of me wishes that we had, but I just never wanted to make him think that I didn't think he would make it. Because I still had hope, and I didn't want him to give up hope."<doc-sep>Former professional wrestler Matt Cappotelli has died after a long battle with cancer. He was 38. On Friday, the WWE star's wife, Lindsay, shared a heartbreaking message on Instagram confirming the news. “Today my love — my strong, sweet, beautiful love — took his last breath at 3:30 a.m. and went Home to be with Jesus…exactly one year after his brain surgery,” she wrote in the caption of a photo of herself and her husband. "You think you can be prepared for this when you know it’s coming, but you just can’t. The only person whose comfort I want right now is the one who can’t give it to me," she continued. "I miss him so much already. I know where he is now is so much better, but it doesn’t change how much I miss him. It's so much harder than I even thought it would be." Cappotelli first gained fame when he earned a WWE contract after winning the third season of the reality competition series Tough Enough in 2003, alongside fellow winner and wrestler John Hennigan. Cappotelli, who wrestled under his own name and the pseudonym The Flava, made several appearances on multiple WWE shows including WWE Sunday Night Heat, Raw and Vengeance. He was later sent down to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) to continue to develop his promotional skills and stage presence. However, his promising career was cut short in 2007 when he revealed to fans that he had been diagnosed with an astrocytoma, a form of malignant brain cancer, and that he had to undergo surgery. The initial treatment was successful and most of the tumor was removed. However, in 2017, Cappotelli revealed that he'd been diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, the most aggressive form of brain cancer. He underwent another surgery to remove a large tumor in June 27, but was hospitalized again in December. In May 2018, following a series of consultations with his neuro-oncologist, his wife announced that he had decided to stop medical treatments for the tumors. After his retirement from wrestling, Cappotelli returned to OVW in 2013 to serve as a trainer for the organization's beginners program. His death was mourned by those he mentored and his many fans on Facebook, and both WWE and OVW paid tribute to the late star on Twitter. WWE is saddened to learn that Matt Cappotelli, a promising Superstar who was a co-winner of WWE Tough Enough III, passed away Friday at age 38. https://t.co/MCuoAHBkt6 — WWE (@WWE) June 30, 2018 It is with deep sadness that we share news of the passing of former @WWE superstar & #OVW trainer Matt Cappotelli. https://t.co/qfKEbzZpknpic.twitter.com/KfdYvjorgW — OVW Wrestling (@ovwrestling) June 30, 2018 Stars We've Lost in 2018 This video is unavailable because we were unable to load a message from our sponsors. If you are using ad-blocking software, please disable it and reload the page. RELATED CONTENT: WWE Hall of Famer George 'The Animal' Steele Dies at 79 WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair in ICU, Rep Asks for 'Prayers' Dallas McCarver, Bodybuilder and Boyfriend of WWE Star Dana Brooke, Dead at 26 Related Gallery<doc-sep>
WWE star and winner of “Tough Enough III” Matt Cappotelli has died after a yearlong battle with a malignant brain tumor. He was 38. Cappotelli’s wife Lindsay shared the news in a Facebook post to a group dedicated to Cappotelli. “Today my love — my strong, sweet, beautiful love — took his last breath at 3:30 a.m. and went Home to be with Jesus…exactly one year after his brain surgery,” she wrote. “You think you can be prepared for this when you know it’s coming, but you just can’t. The only person whose comfort I want right now is the one who can’t give it to me.” Cappotelli was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2005, ending his promising wrestling career. Though that brain tumor was removed, he continued to undergo yearly screenings, and in June 2017, he began to experience headaches and “seizure activity,” according to Lindsay. After further testing, his doctor advised that he undergo surgery to remove a tumor that had grown significantly since a February screening. Cappotelli underwent the surgery on June 29, 2017, and though his surgeon was able to remove 90% of the tumor, results confirmed he had grade 4 glioblastoma. He was hospitalized again in December 2017 and in May 2018, after consultations with his neuro-oncologist, Cappotelli ceased medical interventions for the tumor. He won “Tough Enough III” alongside John Hennigan. After the win, he went on to train at Ohio Valley Wrestling and achieved the OVW Heavyweight Championship. Cappotelli had attended college at the Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Mich., where he was also a football player. He resided in Louisville, Ky. with his wife.