The Special Olympics National Games will be in Medicine Hat, Alta., from August 11 to 14, with Grey Bruce athletes on their way to compete for Team Ontario.
Laura Conquest with the Owen Sound and Area Special Olympics will be competing in rhythmic gymnastics, with her coach, Paula Mercer, joining her in Alberta. Also going from Owen Sound are Deb Weedon and Dianne Speed as coaches for swimming.
Conquest qualified after performing at the 2024 provincial games and is making her first appearance at the national games.
Ray Tomlinson, Carly Underwood, and April Virtue will all be on the bocce ball team from the Saugeen Shores Special Olympics. All three captured gold medals in bocce ball at the provincial games in 2025.
Tomlinson and Underwood have been to the national games previously – both coming in the 1990s – while Virtue is making her first appearance.
Saugeen Shores Special Olympics coordinator Cheryl Smethurst took her athletes to the airport en route to the games and says it is an indescribable feeling to watch her athletes get ready to embark on the trip.
Smethurst also says it costs $1,400 per athlete to compete, making community support very important.
“Oh my god, the community came through for us in droves, in droves… It was amazing,” Smethurst says.
The final group representing the Grey Bruce region is the South Saugeen Falcons in softball. The co-ed softball team is one of three at the games after winning gold at the provincial games.