By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Two athletes and two coaches from Hays were part of the Kansas contingent who traveled June 4 to 12 to compete in the Special Olympics U.S.A games in Orlando, Fla.
Kacey Dannels competed in track and field and Ryan Hoag competed in bowling. Brent Kaiser coached track and field and Noalee McDonald-Augustine assisted both the tennis and track and field teams.
Four athletes from Kansas competed in the track and field portion of the event. Just less than 100 athletes from Kansas competed in the games. All the Kansas track athletes won medals.
Kaiser said the heat was a factor in the competition, but everyone did very well.
Dannels brought home a silver in the shot put, a bronze in the 4X100 relay and bronze in the 400 meters.
"It's a blast because you get to participate in all different events," Dannels said of track and field. "I just like to run. I like to run shorter distances."
Hoag, 38, placed sixth in singles bowling, fourth in doubles and sixth in team bowling.
Hoag and Dannels both said their favorite aspect of attending the games was meeting other athletes.
"Just getting to see different states and getting to make new friends and getting to experience a once-in-a-lifetime thing," Dannels said.
Dannels said she also enjoyed watching other athletes compete in softball and volleyball.
This was Dannels' second trip to Special Olympics USA. She also attended the national event in 2018 in Seattle.
Dannels participates in Special Olympics activities year-round, including bowling, softball, volleyball, as well as track and field.
Regional, state and national Special Olympics were placed on hold during the pandemic for the protection of the athletes.
"It was a great time to be back doing what we all love," Dannels said.
Kaiser of Hays is a former employee of the Arc of the Central Plains and now is a development and sports coordinator for Special Olympics Kansas.
Kaiser said it was important for the athletes to be able to reconnect with friends this year.
"Our athletes haven't been able to see some of their friends from around the state that they normally get to see," he said. "They had all become accustomed to seeing each other.
"Special Olympics Kansas is really just a big community. Everybody really gets along and knows each other. It was really cool to get everybody back together.
"I was really proud of how our Hays athletes and coaches represented themselves while they were there," Kaiser said. "Everybody really had a good time. They met new people, which I think is big. The social side of it is a huge part of it."
The local athletes also visited Disney's Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom while they were in Orlando.
Textron provided a private jet in cooperation with Garmin as part of the Special Olympics Airlift to fly the Hays Special Olympics athletes from Wichita to Orlando. Kaiser said a large contingent was on hand to cheer the athletes as they left from Wichita and when they arrived back from Orlando.