A youth wrestling tournament in Bristol has been renamed in honor of the late Joseph Kapacziewski, a former Bristol Eastern High wrestler and U.S. Army Ranger who was inducted into the Connecticut Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2013.

The Joe Kap Memorial Tournament is open to boys and girls ages 6-12 and in middle school. It is sponsored by the Bristol Gladiators youth wrestling program.

Portions of the proceeds went to No Greater Sacrifice, a non-profit organization dedicated to investing in the children of our nation’s fallen and wounded service members by providing scholarships and resources to improve their quality of life through higher education.

Kapacziewski joined the U.S. Army after graduating from Bristol Eastern in 2001. He served in the Army with distinction for more than 15 years in 3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Ranger Special Troops Battalion, and Regimental Headquarters Company. 

After Joe was severely wounded in an ambush in northern Iraq in 2005, he persevered through a difficult and lengthy recovery and overcame near-impossible odds to become the first Ranger to return to combat with a prosthetic leg.

Kapacziewski continued to lead as a squad leader and platoon Sergeant, ultimately deploying a total of 11 times in support of the Global War on Terrorism.

After retiring from the Army, Kapacziewski continued to serve his country and lead his brothers in arms up until the time of his passing on January 23, 2023. He is survived by his beloved wife, Kimberly; his sons, Wyatt and Cody.

At Bristol Eastern, he played football and wrestled. Kapacziewski told the Hartford Courant’s Lori Riley in 2013 that he “credits his early wrestling training with learning discipline and how to be physically and mentally tough.”

According to the Courant, he started as a freshman when his math teacher, John Benoit, recruited him in class. He began at 103 pounds and worked his way up to 125 as a senior, when he won a conference title and finished fifth at the Class L championships in 2001.

Kapacziewski wrote a book called Back in the Fight about his service in military and his quest to return to his platoon.

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