It was a successful weekend for local Special Olympians.
The 2025 Special Olympics Alberta Summer Games were in Grande Prairie Friday, July 11 through Sunday, July 13, with athletes from Lethbridge and the surrounding area coming home with 57 total medals.
“It’s just incredible to see,” says Anny Chenard, Special Olympics chair for Lethbridge.
“Our swimmers, some of them beat their best times yet. We have one swimmer [Bryce Colyer] that did freestyle, and got 20 seconds, and this was his first-ever Summer Games. Our bocce team got gold, our softball [team] got silver – just seeing their achievements and all the hard work they put in this last year has been incredible.”
Chenard says the actual competitions themselves are a big focus of the Games, but the camaraderie that comes with Special Olympics events can make an even bigger impact, with over 2,500 athletes, coaches and volunteers involved.
“This is a non-paid event for most of the people that are there, so the recognition and just getting to meet new people, the comradery you get to have meeting other teams, it’s something that just builds your heart and explodes,” she states.
Chenard adds that the Lethbridge contingent included athletes from surrounding areas like Coaldale, Claresholm, Vulcan and Raymond.
“I can’t say enough how incredibly proud I am of my coaches, my volunteers but most importantly my athletes,” she says.
“Just hearing the people, even in Grande Prairie, saying Lethbridge has been so polite, they’ve represented you guys so well – I’m just exploding with absolute pride.”
Following their success in northern Alberta, athletes will continue to train and compete in qualifiers to land a spot at the national Special Olympics Games in Medicine Hat in summer 2026. The national event will serve as a qualifier for Worlds.
“We’re going to keep training and keep working hard and see what we can get and where we can go,” adds Chenard.
Results from the Summer Games are available on the Special Olympics Alberta website.
