A 14-year-old Harriston area resident, Derek Beyer, was recently honoured here for his wrestling results.
At a council meeting, Mayor David Anderson said “Derek is a resident of Minto.”
He was being saluted for winning the Ontario bantam championship at the Eastern Canadian Championships on May 1. With him was his father Darrell.
Anderson said there is quite a commitment for the wrestler and for the family with travel across Ontario.
Darrell said his son started wrestling in grade 7 when he was out of hockey.
He added that Derek has also been involved in weight training and track events for the past four or five years. When the decision was made to get involved in wrestling, they considered a number of area clubs.
Originally, the idea was to take part in the Guelph club, but they instead ended up in Kitchener.
“Right off the bat, Ivan Jacobs, one of the head coaches, said Derek was a natural.”
He placed fourth in Ontario last year, first in Ontario this year, and first in the Eastern Canadians.
He never lost one match, Darrell added. He said the wrestlers Derek trains with are much older. One is in grade 11 and the other in grade 12. Both are champions and both have scholarships.
