Mayor Apologizes After Being Ejected From Wrestling Tournament

Mayor Apologizes After Being Ejected From Wrestling Tournament

Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan in a statement said he could have handled the situation better after he was ejected from a high school wrestling tournament over the weekend.

"As a community leader, a passionate wrestling fan and a supportive parent of a student athlete, I should have handled this incident better, no matter how I felt about the calls made during the match," Callahan said in the statement.

The mayor was attending the District 11 Class AAA wrestling championships at a high school in Easton when he reportedly objected loudly to calls made during a match.

Callahan said he reached out to the referee, Dennis Buchman, to apologize.

"We've both been involved in wrestling for decades and had a warm conversation reflecting on the great passion that we have for the sport," the mayor said.

Buchman, in a separate statement, said he appreciated the mayor's apology and described the incident as being "blown out of proportion."

"Unfortunately, this incident has been blown out of proportion and is being made into something different than it was," a statement read. "Certainly, John (Callahan) and I both want to put this behind us."