Moments after Oklahoma State heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson pulled off one of the biggest upsets in NCAA Wrestling history, he got up off the mat and saluted President Donald Trump.
Trump, alongside a score of other members of his inner circle, attended the NCAA Wrestling Championships in Philadelphia on Saturday night.
Hendrickson’s main-event bout against heavy favorite and reigning Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson was decided in the final 20 seconds of the match.
The Oklahoma State behemoth scored a 3-point takedown and prevented Steveson from getting a reversal to win the NCAA title, with his coaches mobbing him seconds after the clock reached zeroes.
After a few more moments, Hendrickson, second lieutenant in the United States Air Force, was draped with an American flag and stood at attention in the direction of the 47th President.
Trump enjoyed the gesture – clapping and waving his fist in support.
Hendrickson pulled off one of the biggest upsets in NCAA Wrestling history and saluted Trump
Donald Trump got a standing ovation as he arrived at the NCAA Wrestling Championships
Hendrickson and Trump then hugged before a post-match interview with the Cowboy.
‘He said he’s very proud of me.,’ Hendrickson said of Trump. ‘That’s the Commander in Chief. I’m very proud of that. He came here to support his troops, I put on a show for him, I won him that national title.’
Trump was given a largely raucous reception when he walked into the NCAA wrestling championships on Saturday night for the second time in three years.
Trump made his way into Wells Fargo Center not long after 7pm ET, cutting off an interview with a wrestler that was being broadcast on ESPN.
The Republican was given a standing ovation as he emerged from the bowels of the arena, waving to his fans and pumping his fists. There was a smattering of boos but they were largely drowned out by chants of ‘USA’.
After shaking hands with some of his loyal fans, Trump took his seat in a VIP section by the mat and sat next to Senator Dave McCormick and his wife Dina Powell.
Trump’s entourage also included Elon Musk, Congressman Jim Jordan, who is a two-time NCAA national champion wrestler, chief of staff Susie Wiles and Outkick founder Clay Travis.
Penn State wrestler Carter Starocci made a beeline for Trump on Saturday night just moments after becoming the first-ever five-time national champion.
Footage posted by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt shows Starocci shaking hands with Trump and handing over his trophy to the president before they posed for photos together.
Hendrickson and Trump then hugged before a live interview with the Oklahoma State star
Before the salute, Hendrickson pointed at Trump, knowing the President was in the front row
Hours earlier, Trump was pictured landing at Philadelphia International Airport on Air Force One. He was greeted by Oklahoma senator Markwayne Mullin and his wife Christie.
The A-list entourage was in Philadelphia to watch Penn State try and secure its fourth straight men’s team title.
It is the latest example of how Trump as mostly limited travel early in his new term to trips built around sports events.
The Republican president spent Friday night at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey, about 70 miles northeast of Philadelphia, on what was his first visit there of his second term.
‘We’re going to the big fight. The reason I’m going is in Philadelphia. They have the NCAA, world, wrestling for college. And I’ve always supported the wrestlers,’ Trump told reporters as he left the White House on Friday evening.
‘I want to support them. These are the great college wrestlers from the various schools.’
In the two-plus months since returning to the White House, Trump attended the Super Bowl in New Orleans and the Daytona 500 in Florida, where his motorcade drove a portion of the track. While president-elect he went to a UFC fight in New York.
