Wrestler's Loss Hits Home in Nebraska

Nebraska Town Went All Out for Vering

BEIJING, Aug. 14 -- They had the wrestling matches playing on big screens out at Howells Fabrication on County Road 14 -- three screens, each wired into a laptop and a projector. With the Internet connections a little flaky, one screen would show Brad Vering scoring a point a split-second before the others, so the roar that went up from the several hundred folks -- that's half the town of Howells, Neb., mind you -- sitting in their lawn chairs in the middle of the big warehouse would sort of travel around the room in waves.

It was late Wednesday evening, Nebraska time, and there was a little more than 90 minutes between Vering's first match and his second -- time to grab another beer. Or another coffee. Or both. If everything went as planned, it was going to be a long, triumphant night in Howells, and folks were hunkered down to see it through.

"I hope he can feel the vibe there from Howells, Nebraska," Vering's sister, Kristyn, said when the phone was handed to her, the only member of Brad's immediate family who stayed back. It is believed the little girl she delivered a few weeks ago pushed the population of Howells up to 641, assuming nobody died or moved out.

In Beijing, at China Agricultural University Gymnasium, it was Thursday morning, and Brad Vering, who turns 31 next week, was down to his final day as a Greco-Roman wrestler. A silver medalist at the 2007 world championships, he was expecting a long, triumphant day -- five matches, if he went the distance -- then a satisfied, easy transition into retirement.

"He's going to win the gold," his father, Reynold, said from the stands before Brad's opening match. With Reynold and his older son, Russ, here in Beijing, they entrusted the family farm and their business, Vering's Feed Service, to others. "This is his year."

But only a couple of hours later, the Vering family was sitting in stunned silence in the stands. The rowdy party back in Howells was breaking up. And Brad Vering was standing in the mixed zone beneath the gymnasium, 6,500 miles from home, wearing a navy blue hooded sweatshirt and trying to hold back the tears as he explained what had gone wrong.

"I had a chance and I just didn't get it done," said Vering, a volunteer assistant coach at American University, after losing to Denis Forov of Armenia in heartbreaking fashion in his second match in the 84-kilogram division. "I've been blessed. I feel like I've had a pretty good career. I can't complain about anything. You put in all this work, and then if you don't get the result you want, it's really hard."

Vering lost the first period and won the second, and in the third and final period he wrestled Forov to a draw over the first minute of action. In the par terre tiebreaker, Vering drew the favorable position, getting the passive position last. All he needed to do to win the match and advance to the quarterfinals was prevent Forov from flipping him for 30 seconds.

He lasted almost 25.

"To get turned with five seconds on the clock, that's a tough one," said Steve Fraser, head coach of the U.S. Greco-Roman team. "If anyone deserves to have a good result here, it's Brad Vering. I know he's very heartbroken about it."

How could it have ended so soon? And what were they going to do with all that beer back home in Howells? It was no secret that pretty much every drop there was to be had in the entire town was on ice over at Howells Fab, as the locals call it, the sprinkler-system manufacturing shop owned by Tom Kulhanek, Brad's brother-in-law. Howells Fab is where they hosted "Brad Vering Day" after he won the NCAA 197-pound championship for the University of Nebraska in 2000, and where, on this night, a sports bar had sprung up, with all the TVs turned to one event.

Pity the man looking for a cold beer anywhere else in Howells.