26-year-old Hannah Rapp, a Purdue University graduate, was just getting started on her boxing career.
She was five weeks removed from her first-ever world championship fight when she met a tragic, violent end in a road rage incident on July 18.
Unbeknownst to her, she was also about to start another chapter of her life soon.
At Hannah’s memorial service, her partner, Dr. Will Pollalis, broke down as he talked about the marriage proposal he was secretly planning.
Highlights
- 26-year-old boxer Hannah Rapp lost her life in a fatal accident while biking with her boyfriend, Dr. Will Pollalis.
- A teary-eyed Will revealed at her memorial that he was about to propose to her soon.
- The man who hit Hannah, who has several prior arrests, has been charged with manslaughter.
“I love you. I miss you,” Will said at the ceremony, holding back tears.
Hannah Rapp was fatally injured by a motorist while out biking with her boyfriend
Image credits: hrapp7
Hannah Rapp, a native of Yorktown, Indiana, was a four-sport athlete in high school, playing basketball, cross-country, soccer, and track.
She focused solely on track while attaining her engineering degree from Purdue University.
But her life got derailed by mental health issues and an eating dis**der during the COVID-19 pandemic.
After recovering in rehab, she found boxing and chose to pursue it professionally. She also began to advocate for mental health awareness.
In 2024, she relocated to Texas with a full-time job as a fire and life safety inspector at Texas A&M University. The same year, she made her boxing debut.
31-year-old Charles Medina was identified as the man who drove a car into Hannah
Image credits: Bryan Boxing
On Saturday, July 18, 2026, she was riding her bike with Will along FN 159 in Brazos County on a two-lane area near College Station.
According to reports, Will yelled and raised his hand as a car driven by a 31-year-old man, Charles Medina, sped dangerously close past the couple.
In response, the car skidded to a stop and reversed hard into Hannah, leaving its rear window glass shattered and the boxer gravely injured.
Authorities arrived at the scene after receiving a 911 call at 9:50 a.m. local time and found Hannah lying on the ground.
They transported her to the nearest Baylor Scott & White Hospital, where she was declared deceased.
Hannah’s boyfriend was going to propose on her upcoming birthday
Image credits: KHOU 11
A memorial for Hannah was held on Thursday, July 23, in College Station, attended by her family, friends, and colleagues from both the boxing world and academia.
The ceremony saw one of its most emotional moments when Hannah’s boyfriend of five years, Will, took to the podium.
The engineering professor at Texas A&M University revealed that he was planning to pop the question soon.
“You didn’t know it, but we were going ring shopping as part of your birthday present,” he said. “I’m so sorry I waited.”
Hannah was about to turn 27 on July 29.
“Be with me still,” he continued. “Give me strength and guide me. I can’t do it without you.”
Hannah’s father was presented with the NABF women’s featherweight championship belt
Image credits: William Pollalis
At the memorial, Hannah’s longtime boxing coach presented her father, James Rapp, with the North American Boxing Federation women’s featherweight championship belt, a title she had held for the past two years.
“If she were a ping pong player, she would've been ping pong champion of the world,” James said, remembering his daughter. “If she were a cyclist, she’d have won the Tour de France 10 times in a row.”
But Hannah chose boxing, and after eight victories and one defeat as a professional, she faced Tiara Brown for the WBC featherweight world title in June. She lost, but not before securing her opponent’s respect.
Brown told Texas Monthly that she “almost vomited” and “cried a lot” after finding out about Hannah’s passing.
Hannah’s mother refused to let the devastating tragedy taint her legacy
Image credits: FOX 26 Houston
Shortly before the memorial service, Hannah’s mother, Angie Grimes, spoke with Fox 26 Houston’s Karys Belger about the heartbreaking tragedy.
“Hannah was a light. She was a force for positive change,” Angie started. “She was quirky. She had such a funny sense of humor… Her smile would light up any room. She was a fiercely loyal friend.”
When asked how she learned about the incident, Angie said Will had called her right after the collision.
“A few hours later, her coach called me from the hospital and let me know the news that despite the hospital’s best efforts, they couldn’t save her, and she had left the earth,” Angie said, teary-eyed.
“The call no mom ever is supposed to get, and my world was absolutely shattered. It still is.”
“I’m making funeral arrangements today instead of starting preparations for a wedding for my daughter, and planning for the rest of her very bright future,” Hannah’s mother continued. “She was robbed of that.”
But she refused to let the manner of her demise dictate the way people would remember her.
“She made things better. She loved people, and people loved and adored her, and we want that to be her legacy,” Angie said. “Hannah’s life mattered, and I want to make sure that it continues mattering.”
She also shared GoFundMe details and the locations of the candlelight vigils held in Hannah’s honor, including one outside Bryan Boxing Club in Texas, where she trained.
About 400 people gathered for the occasion.
The man who hit Hannah Rapp has a decade-old criminal rap sheet
Image credits: FOX 44 News
Charles Medina, who was arrested at the scene of the accident, has been charged with manslaughter with a bond of $250,000.
He reportedly told the investigators that he was on his way to pick up his mother and thought Will was flagging him down with his yelling and raised hand.
He also said he was reversing at a speed of about 15 mph and didn’t see Hannah until the car hit her.
“The physical evidence on scene, including skid marks, the severity of damage to the vehicle, and the victim’s final resting position, contradicted [Medina]’s account,” the affidavit submitted by the investigators said.
A separate new charge of aggravated a**ault with a d**dly weapon, “related to the second bicyclist who was present during the incident,” with a $500,000 bond, has been added to his record, the Brazos County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
Medina has a lengthy arrest history in Brazos County, dating back more than a decade
Image credits: hrapp7
The neighboring Grimes County also revoked a combined $275,000 bond Medina had previously posted on charges of criminal mischief and discharging of a firearm stemming from two earlier incidents.
He was arrested in 2012 for reckless driving and evading arrest with a vehicle. He pleaded guilty in both cases.
He was arrested in February 2024 after allegedly chasing passing cars with an axe and a knife on a road that merges with the highway Hannah was hit on.
Some of Hannah’s friends and family have started a Change.org petition to enact “Hannah’s Law,” proposing stricter bond conditions to keep repeat offenders such as Medina off the streets.
"My heart goes out." The internet mourned over boxer Hannah Rapp's tragic demise
