Dunia Sibomana-Rodriguez of Long Beach, New York was a three-time New York state champion, a four-time finalist and a five-time place-winner for Long Beach High School.

The adopted son of Miguel and Marissa Rodriguez, he will continue his wrestling career at the University of North Carolina. He joined Jacori Teemer and Vito Arujau as the only wrestlers to win five Nassau County titles.

Sibomana-Rodriguez earned All-American honors in Greco-Roman with a fourth-place finish at Fargo in 2025 after winning the freestyle title in 2024. He earned All-American honors with third-place finishes in Greco-Roman at U17 nationals in 2023 and freestyle at U15 nationals in 2022. Sibomana-Rodriguez was a two-time National High School Coaches Association All-American while also being a New York state triple crown winner and a state freestyle and Greco-Roman champion.

He was team captain for wrestling for three years and also earned all-county honors and was team captain in soccer.

Sibomana-Rodriguez participated in “Surf for All” a program created by local shop Skudin Surf, which gets kids with physical and cognitive disabilities into the water, and now volunteers every summer with the program. He also volunteers with “Coats for Kids” and volunteered as a youth wrestling coach.

He is studying television and film production and sports broadcasting. After being held back a year in second grade while learning English, Sibomana-Rodriguez has excelled in the classroom and made the high honor roll as a junior and senior.

Sibomana-Rodriguez was named Kids Helping Kids Kid of the Year and has also received the community spirit award.

As a six-year-old Sibomana-Rodriguez survived an attack by chimpanzees while playing with his brother and cousin at Virunga National Park in the Congo. While the other two boys were killed, Sibomana-Rodriguez survived with traumatic injuries to his lips, face and right ear. Many of the muscles in his face were destroyed and he lost the middle finger on his left hand. Sibomana-Rodriguez came to America for reconstructive surgeries a few months after the harrowing incident and lived with foster families both on Long Island and in Brooklyn.

He was officially adopted by the Rodriguez family when he was in middle school.