One of the marquee events at the State Fair of Texas on Friday.
It’s the Big Tex Youth Livestock Auction Due to COVID-19, the public can’t be there, yet it is still a milestone moment for youth across Texas who worked hard to get their animals show-ready and hope to earn a spot in the arena at auction.
Among those teens hard at work is Elizabeth Norwood.
“It’s not about the money. It’s not about the win. It's about the love and care; the effort I put into it that pays off,” Norwood, of Waxahachie, told NBC 5 as she got her 1,200-pound steer ready to show.
It paid off for the seventh-grader. Her black Angus named Maximus was named Champion Lightweight British Steer, the best in its breed. It was the second time for Norwood to win breed champ at the State Fair. It sold for $11,000 at auction and was purchased by the State Fair of Texas employees.
The coveted title of Grand Champion Market Steer went to Zane Potter from Harris County. The 2019 grand champion sold for a history-making $155,000. Zane and his steer now wait to see if they can break that record.
Grand champion titles were also awarded for market barrow, lamb, goat and broiler.
Approximately 2,700 students from around the state competed for one of the coveted 433 spots in the 2020 Big Tex Youth Livestock Auction. In a news release, fair organizers say the opportunities for students to show their projects was several limited this year, making the auction more important than ever. Through the years, the Big Tex Youth Livestock Auction and Scholarship Program, the State Fair has awarded more than $27 million in auction awards and scholarships.
