The Fiesta Bowl on Tuesday named former Arizona State national champion wrestler Anthony Robles as its grand marshal for the Dec. 28 parade.
“It’s an honor,” Robles told Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta. “Being the hometown boy, I took a lot of pride in that and this is still home for me now. This is a blessing. This is an opportunity that I’m never going to forget: this day, the game, the parade.”
Robles, who was born with one leg, attended Mesa High School and then ASU, where he became a 2011 NCAA Champion at the 125-pound weight and a three-time NCAA All-American.
He now coaches and makes appearances as a motivational speaker.
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Robles credits his mother for giving him the mindset that his goals should not change because of his differences. His cousin introduced him to wrestling, and the sport became his place to show he could fit in and succeed even if he had to do something a different way.
“I treated missing a leg and overcoming challenges like a puzzle,” Robles said. “It wasn’t that I couldn’t do it or I didn’t have the pieces, it was just like, OK, I had to move these pieces around to fit what I wanted to do.”
Anthony Robles’ and his family’s story featured in Amazon Prime film
Robles’ upbringing and success on the mat will come to life in an Amazon Prime feature film next year.
Unstoppable will tell the story of the former Sun Devil wrestler, who became a champion despite beginning his career as a walk-on. The movie is a limited release in theaters on Dec. 6 and will be available on Amazon Prime Jan. 16.
It features several Hollywood heavy hitters.
Jharrel Jerome, who was in the 2016 Golden Globe best motion picture-drama Moonlight, plays Robles.
The supporting cast includes Jennifer Lopez as Robles’ mom, Judy. Don Cheadle plays his college coach, Shawn Charles, while Michael Peña plays Robles’ high school coach, Bobby Williams.
Robles does his own wrestling stunts in the movie.
“It was a surreal experience and felt like a dream,” he told Bickley & Marotta of the movie coming to life. “Moreso than that, I really loved how these individuals came together and they really cared about telling my story in an authentic way, to make my family and I proud. They accomplished that.
“I think overall the message is about being unstoppable and wrestling through life’s challenges. I believe it’s going to be very relatable to everyone who watches it.”