Ben Askren was a two-time national champion and a four-time NCAA finalist for the University of Missouri and also competed in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Askren became the first Missouri wrestler to be a four-time All-American and the first to compete in the Olympics.

Following runner-up finishes as a freshman and sophomore, Askren won 87 consecutive matches as a junior and senior while capturing back-to-back national titles in 2006 and 2007. The 87 wins in a row ranks in the Top 10 in NCAA history. Askren had a career record of 153-7, including 93 wins by fall and an NCAA record of pinning 18 consecutive opponents in the first period.

In 2006 and 2007, Askren received the Dan Hodge Trophy, which is presented annually to the top college wrestler and referred to as the Heisman Trophy of wrestling, and the Wade Schalles Award, presented annually to college wrestling’s best pinner. Hodge and Schalles are both Distinguished Members of the Hall of Fame.

Named the Outstanding Wrestler at the 2006 NCAA Championships, Askren was a three-time Big 12 Conference champion and four-time finalist while also being a four-time Big 12 Conference All-Academic selection.

He was a two-time Wisconsin state wrestling champion and a three-time All-American for Arrowhead High School in Hartland, Wisconsin.

Askren teamed up with his brother, Max Askren, and their high school wrestling coach, John Mesenbrink, to found Askren Wrestling Academy in 2011. It has grown into one of the biggest, and some would argue the best, clubs in America. AWA has produced 162 Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association state champions and three NCAA Division I champions, Parker Keckeisen, Mitchell Mesenbrink and Keegan O’Toole.

He underwent a double lung transplant in June of 2025 after being diagnosed with necrotizing pneumonia, a rare and severe version of the illness that destroys the lungs. Askren was released from the hospital on July 22 and has been recovering at home.