Seven Kelowna, B.C., competitors will make their way to the Special Olympics Winter Games next week, and they’re each ready to give their all.
“Our athletes have been training for a good seven to eight months, five days a week, and they go to a lot of different programs like powerlifting, snowshoeing of course when the snow hit, track and field, plus they do training on their own,” Team BC coach David Wilkinson said Monday as some of his athletes met for a training session at Kelowna’s Apple Bowl.
Of the seven athletes heading to Calgary for the 2024 Special Olympic Winter Games, three will compete in snowshoeing and four will compete in cross-country skiing.
This will be athlete Tony Wilkinson’s third time representing Team BC at nationals for winter sports.
“It just feels incredible, and I find that being part of Special Olympics, it has felt like home to me,” Tony Wilkinson said.
It will be the first time competing on a national stage for Kassidy Rutledge and Garrison Frost.
“I’m very excited, this is actually my very first nationals, so I’m pretty hyped,” Rutledge said.
Frost said he’s expecting to have a lot of fun.
David Wilkinson has been involved with Special Olympics for more than 20 years. He says it’s a rewarding job that has taught him about the importance of inclusion and acceptance.
“If you get involved, you will never regret it,” he said. “What I get back from my volunteering with Special Olympics way outdoes all the time that I put into them.”
The athletes who call Wilkinson their coach are his biggest fans, too.
“He’s been a really good coach, and he’s helped me through my journey … and he’s a really good advocate for Special Olympics,” Rutledge said.
The opening ceremonies kick off on Feb. 27 at Stampede Park in Calgary, and these competitors say the goal is to bring home gold.