By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
A coach and an athlete will be representing the Arc of the Central Plains at the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games in Orlando, Fla.
Tyler Powers has been chosen as an athlete in bowling, and Brent Kaiser, Arc activities director, has been chosen as a track and field coach.
The games will be June 5 to 12, 2022.
"I know he's really excited about going," Kaiser said of Powers. "His family is pretty excited about it."
Kaiser said he tries to nominate someone from the local program every time the applications for the USA games come open. He said he would like to grow Special Olympics in western Kansas.
"I think it is not only important for our program, but for western Kansas to have people represented on Team Kansas," he said.
Kaiser said coaching at the national games is a dream come true —something he has wanted to do ever since he started his job with the Arc.
Kaiser will be coaching four athletes from Kansas. Within the next month, Kaiser will send the athletes training plans.
The pandemic will likely complicate the athletes's training for the 2022 games. In a normal year, the athletes would meet with their coaches in person in the year leading up to the national games.
They would have met at the Kansas Special Olympic games, but those games have been canceled for a second year because of the pandemic.
Kaiser said this year most of those meetings will likely be through email and Zoom.
Kaiser is one of 23 coaches, and Powers is one of 71 athletes who have been chosen from Kansas to attend the 2022 national games. Those athletes will compete in eight individual sports and three team sports.
Special Olympics USA expects 4,000 athletes, 10,000 volunteers, 1,500 coaches and 125,000 fans from all 50 states at the 2022 games. Past games have been covered by ESPN.
Powers and Kaiser will need to raise about $1,000 each to support their trips.
You can click here for a link to Kaiser's fundraising page. A link on the national 2022 summer games fundraising page will be soon be added for Powers.
You can also make donations in person at the Arc of the Central Plains, 600 Main, Hays, KS 67601.