PHILADELPHIA – Penn Athletics was saddened to learn about the passing of Richard "Dick" DiBatista on February 29 at the age of 99.
 
A member of the Inaugural Class inducted into the Penn Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996, DiBatista remains arguably the greatest wrestler in program history. He ended his Penn career as a two-time NCAA champion—only Matt Valenti C'07 joins him in this club among Quaker grapplers—and likely it was only World War II that kept DiBatista from becoming a three-time NCAA champion. He also won three Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) championship in his weight class, from 1941-43. (The NCAA canceled its Championships from 1943-45.)
 
"Dick DiBatista was one of the greatest wrestlers of all time," said Penn's current head wrestling coach and fellow Penn Athletics Hall of Famer Roger Reina. "Dick was a champion, an educator, a veteran, a loyal Penn alumnus, and a revered community member. He was a stalwart of Coach Austin Bishop's incredible, undefeated Penn teams. Dick will be missed by our community, and his legacy will always be honored at Penn."
 
DiBatista posted an incredible 137-0 career record on the mat that included high school, prep school, college and amateur competition. He won a Pennsylvania state championship in 1938 while at Lower Merion High School, then a National Prep School title in 1939 while at Franklin & Marshall Academy. DiBatista also was named to the 1940 and 1944 Olympic Teams, although the Games were not held because of WWII. During the War, DiBatista served as 2nd Lieutenant in the Marines and was stationed in the South Pacific.
 
An accomplished athlete, DiBatista also was a "Munger Man" at Penn, winning three letters as a lineman in football from 1940-42 under legendary head coach George Munger. Penn went a combined 18-5-2 on the gridiron during his career, ranking 14th in the final Associated Press national poll in 1940 and 15th in 1941.
 
Along with his spot in the Penn Athletics Hall of Fame, Dick also is a member of the Pennsylvania Wrestling Hall of Fame (1974), the District One Hall of Fame (1990), and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame (1995). He was an inaugural inductee into the National Officials Hall of Fame in 1996, and in 2004 the Lower Merion School District established the Dick DiBatista Wrestling Facility. In 2019, at the age of 98, Dick was inducted into the Delaware County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
 
Born in Palombaro, Italy in 1920, Dick and his family moved to Ardmore, Pa. when he was a young boy. Dick attended Lower Merion High School and Franklin & Marshall Academy before arriving at Penn, where he received a B.S. in Education in 1943 and an M.S. in Education in 1946. 
 
In his adult life, DiBatista enjoyed a 37-year career as a teacher and coach at Lower Merion High School.  He continued to officiate at the collegiate level and served as the Director of Lower Merion summer recreation programs.
 
Private funeral services were held at St. Paul's Cemetery in Ardmore.