Sixty-six athletes and twenty-three coaches from Red Deer were among 1200 individuals who participated in the Special Olympics Alberta 2017 Summer Games in Medicine Hat the weekend of July 7th to 9th. Red Deer athletes competed in eight sports including softball, soccer, golf, Bocce, track and field, 5 and 10 pin bowling and Swimming.
Despite 37 C temperatures that meant modifying some of the outdoor sports and a lack of sleep the second night due to a faulty heat sensor that set off the fire alarm at 1:30 a.m. and forced the evacuation of 400 people from the school the team was staying in, the Red Deer contingent acquitted itself well coming home with a total of 67 medals, 23 gold, 21 silver and 23 bronze.
Next up are the 2018 National Games in Nova Scotia and Red Deer athletes are anxiously waiting to see if they have earned a spot on Team Alberta.