Olympic champ in W’boro on Saturday

Waynesboro wrestling coach Rick Palmer has been trying to bring in an Olympic caliber wrestler for years to host a clinic — little did he know that the biggest name in American wrestling would be available.

On Saturday, the Little Giants wrestling team will host a charity clinic at Kate Collins Middle School featuring the only American wrestler to win gold in Beijing in 2008, Henry Cejudo.

“He’s the best in the world,” Palmer said.

Cejudo is the youngest American to ever win wrestling gold in the Olympics and, at 21-years-old, is regarded by many as the future of wrestling. On Saturday, Cejudo will be teaching techniques that he used during his gold medal run and will even be getting on the mat with his students.

“It’s a once in a lifetime thing, to wrestle an Olympic champion,” Palmer said. “I would have killed for this chance in high school.”

The Waynesboro wrestling program was hit hard by the recession and school budget cuts, forcing it to look for ways to raise money for travel. All profits raised from the clinic will go directly to the Little Giants wrestling program.

Frankie Sanchez, Cejudo’s promoter, and Palmer went to Adams State College together where they were both on the wrestling team. According to Sanchez, he didn’t have enough money to live in the dorms at the college and often slept in the wrestling room, at his teammates’ apartments or in his car. Palmer was a security guard at the college and would open the locker room doors so Sanchez could take a shower before class.

Palmer contacted Sanchez and they immediately put Cejudo’s visit into the works.

“To bring an Olympic champion to Virginia and to help out an old friend like Rick Palmer, who helped me out is the right thing to do,” Sanchez said in an e-mail. “It’s people like Rick Palmer and Henry Cejudo who want to help others succeed in life.”

Cejudo cut his appearance fee in half, so the Little Giants would have more to use for travel and all of the Waynesboro City Council members also chipped in $100 each to cover his expenses.

“I put the word out that we need funding,” Palmer said. “Lana Williams [Mayor Tim Williams’ wife], her son is one of our wrestlers. She’s very involved and she is the main reason we can fund what we did. She talked to them and every member contributed of their own pocket. That’s kind of cool.”

As of Monday, there were 22 spots still available for the 65-wrestler clinic. If there are still spots available, wrestlers can show up at the door or call Palmer at 649-2015 to book in advance.

There will also be a $10 charge at the door for fans who only want to meet Cejudo and not take part in the clinic.