Brookfield Wrestler Comes Home To Start Youth Program, New Gym

Brookfield’s Michael McKeever wrestled all four years he was at Brookfield High School (BHS) and went on to wrestle Division I for Binghamton University for four years after that.

After finishing college last year, McKeever came back home to Brookfield and, in March 2013, opened a gym at the end of Commerce Drive and started CACTUS Wrestling Training Camp.

McKeever said he started wrestling as a means of training off season for football, however he soon fell in love with the sport and made it his primary focus.

Brookfield has had some outstanding wrestlers over the last few years (include Michael’s younger brother, Jack, who won Most Outstanding Wrestler at the State Open in 2012) but the program suffers from the lack of a young base coming up to fill the ranks.

Brookfield, unlike most other towns in the area, does not have a competitive youth wrestling program.

That was McKeever’s main goal when he opened CACTUS, which stands for Champions Are Created Through Unrelenting Sacrifice.

“We’re trying to elevate the area’s standing in wrestling,” he said, with the key being rigorous practice and plenty of opportunities to skirmish competitively. “You have to keep working toward that ultimate goal of being a champion.”

McKeever’s young squad has gone to three meets in the last month and it’s easy to see they’ve been trained well, father Jim McKeever — who works in baseball and softball training — said, noting that while their opponents often seemed larger and stronger, CACTUS wrestlers showed strong form and technique.

“You know when you see a CACTUS kid because they’ll have perfect position and perfect stance,” the elder McKeever said.

To prepare for these competitions, CACTUS offers training four days a week — rather than the usual three — that include “college-level workouts,” Michael McKeever said.

The high-intensity workouts are meant to strengthen conditioning, which, when coupled with disciplined adherence to the basics, can “break” better opponents.

Along with McKeever and his brother Jack (who will be returning to Binghamton in the fall for his sophomore year), students will also have the opportunity to learn from two-time NCAA National Champion Teyon Ware, who will be conducting a clinic at the gym on Aug. 12.

Learn more about Team CACTUS, including program information and upcoming clinics on their Facebook page.