The eyes of the nation will be on the greatest wrestlers in the country this weekend at the NCAA Championships in Philadelphia, and President Trump will be there to cheer them on as well.
On Tuesday, OutKick’s Clay Travis posted on X that he would travel to Philadelphia with the president to watch the wrestling championships.
“See you this weekend!” responded White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Trump will attend Saturday night’s clash of collegiate wrestling’s biggest stars for the sport’s biggest prize: a national championship.
With news of the commander-in-chief’s arrival spreading throughout the Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia, where the championships will be held, two of the sport’s biggest stars talked about what it meant to have the president in attendance.
“I’m looking forward to it,” said Penn State’s 184-pound phenom Carter Starocci. “(President Trump) came to the nationals in my sophomore year, and it was really cool. He’s obviously a big fan of combat sports. He’s at all the UFC events. It’s good for our sport.”
According to the York Daily Record, “Starocci, who wrestles at 184 pounds, hopes to become the first five-time NCAA champion.”
Another collegiate and Olympic legend, Minnesota Heavyweight Gable Steveson, said Trump’s attendance was “great” for college wrestling.
“It’s a great thing,” Steveson said. “Regardless of who the president is, I think it’s a great factor to even come and support wrestling. We’re going to put on a good show for him. Him showing up Saturday night, he’s coming to watch some of the best wrestling on earth, and we’re going to give that to him.”
“Steveson, a heavyweight, looks to finish an undefeated season with his third title and first since leaving the sport two years ago to pursue MMA and the NFL,” the York Daily Record reports.
“The wrestling championships are making their return to Wells Fargo Center for the first time since 2011 when Penn State took advantage of being in their home state and won it all,” Fox News reports. “That kicked off a dominant run by the Nittany Lions that is still going; they’ve won eight of the last 11 of the last 13 titles, including each of the last three.
“With a win, this would be their third four-peat in that stretch.”
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.