Two Special Olympics Qualla Boundary athletes recently returned from Toronto after competing in the 2019 Special Olympics Ontario Invitational Youth Games. Jacee Smith of Cherokee and Dustin Pheasant of Cherokee both represented Special Olympics North Carolina by competing in athletics. They were accompanied by Beth Romans-Corsi of Cherokee.
Results:
Jacee Smith
Silver medal: 200m
4th place ribbon: Shot put
5th place ribbon: 100m
Dustin Pheasant
Silver medal: Shot put
Bronze medal: Running long jump
Bronze medal: 100m
5th place ribbon: 200m
The 2019 Special Olympics Ontario Invitational Youth Games brought together 2,000 student-athletes from around the world to Toronto, May 14th to 17th, 2019. For the first time, high school-aged athletes with an intellectual disability had the chance to compete in an international sports competition. Athletes aged 13-21 both with and without an intellectual disability competed in athletics, basketball, bocce, floor hockey or, soccer.