Bozeman, MT – The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF) congratulates Gervasio Negrete as the recipient of the 2027 Conklin Award.
The Conklin Award recognizes the world’s greatest active hunter who pursues game in the most difficult terrain and conditions, while abiding by the highest standards of ethics and fair chase, and is a strong participant in wildlife conservation.
Gervasio Negrete is the 25th winner of this "Tough Man" award, named after the late Dr. James Conklin, a Weatherby Award winner who was passionate about pursuing challenging animals worldwide. Throughout his extensive hunting career, Dr. Conklin exhibited the highest ethical hunting standards and demonstrated a strong commitment to wildlife conservation.
Negrete has shared a passion for hunting and the outdoors since childhood, beginning with air-rifle hunting at around 11 years old. Over the years, that passion evolved into bow hunting, spearfishing, and, beginning in the 1980s, international big-game hunting.
Negrete said, “The Conklin Foundation recognizes only the most challenging species around the world, therefore, I am thrilled to be the winner of the 'Tough Man' Award for 2027. Hunting has always been my passion, and although I haven’t been to a hunt I haven’t enjoyed, my favorites are pursuing mountain game. The adventure, challenges, and toughness of these hunts are unique. All previous winners of this Award are true dedicated hunters, and I couldn’t be prouder of being part of this select group of people that I admire.”
A proud dual citizen of Mexico and Spain, Gervasio currently lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife, Astrid Chavez. They have been married for 23 years and have three children: Malaika (17), Iker (14), and Kiana (11). Gervasio has hunted across all continents and achieved 39 Ovis species and 36 Capra species worldwide.
The Conklin Foundation board reviews the nominees and selects the winner. The Award is then presented at the annual Sheep Show® in Reno, NV. This coming year, the presentation ceremony will be on Friday, February 5th, 2027, during WSF’s Legacy Night banquet.
For Gervasio, the most important part of hunting has never been simply pursuing species, but truly enjoying every step of the journey, the friendships, the adventure, and the memories created along the way. In the early 2000s, Gervasio inspired his brother Eduardo Negrete to begin hunting after years of passionately sharing stories and adventures from the field. Today, his most loyal hunting partner is his son, Iker Negrete, continuing the family tradition into the next generation.
Visit this link to learn more about the 2027 Sheep Show®.
The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF), based in Bozeman, Mont., was founded in 1977 by sportsmen and other wild sheep conservationists. WSF is the premier advocate for wild sheep, having raised and expended more than $145 million, positively impacting these species through population and habitat enhancements, research and education, and conservation advocacy programs in North America, Europe, and Asia to “Put and Keep Wild Sheep On the Mountain”®. In North America, these and other efforts have increased bighorn sheep populations from historic lows in the 1950s-60s of 25,000 to more than 85,000 today. WSF has a membership of more than 11,000 worldwide. www.wildsheepfoundation.org
Tags: Sheep Show