Though unknown to the majority of their campus peers, one dedicated group of students at Utah State University has helped train some of the greatest athletes in the world.
It began 10 years ago in the midst of the grandeur of the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City. And it continues now, every Saturday of the year, as the USU chapter of Special Olympics meets to train athletes with intellectual, cognitive or development disabilities.
During the winter, athletes participate in cross-country skiing, downhill skiing, snowshoeing or snowboarding. In the summer, the choices are soccer, basketball, softball, cycling and track and field.
Regardless of the sport, the mission is the same: to provide training and competition for individuals eight years old and older in a way that develops physical fitness, demonstrates courage and gives opportunities for joy and fellowship.
And it works, “time and time again,” said Thomas Bryner, who has served for the past three years as the USU program’s director. “It gives the athletes the opportunity to grow in so many different ways.”
Marie Greenhalgh said her son, Jason, had always been enamored with cycling. He started biking at a young age — leaving on his Big Wheel tricycle for hours at a time. He continued the behavior when he got his first bike.
“He would just take off, and we wouldn’t know where he was,” Greenhalgh said. “We would spend hours looking for him.”
Jason Greenhalgh carried this passion and skill in cycling with him to the Special Olympics when he was 10 and has been competing ever since.
The 22 year old is modest about his success.
“Well, I went to Park City,” he said. “Got some gold medals.”
Marie Greenhalgh said it wasn’t long after the Park City games that she was called with an invitation for her son to represent Team USA in the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Greece in 2011. Athletes from more than 100 different countries attended.
To help Jason Greenhalgh train, Bryner and fellow USU student Melanie Hall would go biking with him every Saturday. Greenhalgh said they were very helpful.
“They are friendly, and willing to help us out,” he said. “Help us get ready for our games and competitions. When I had the opportunity to go to Greece, and they took time out of their schedules to train me.”
And that training paid off. Greenhalgh competed in the 5k, 10k, and 15k cycling events at the Greek Olympics. He brought home two gold and one silver medal for Team USA.
Marie Greenhalgh said the rewards for being in the Special Olympics go far beyond the medals. Her son, who has a pervasive developmental disorder with autistic characteristics, has difficulty with social situations and doesn’t read social queues like other people do.
“Before he got into it, he had a lot of behavior problems, he didn’t have a social group. It was hard for his siblings to be around him,” she said. “Through this, he made a lot of friends, his confidence just bloomed. He used to have ADHD, but this gave him an outlet. He just couldn’t compete in normal sporting events.”
Jason Greenhalgh is not the only person whose life has been changed by the Special Olympics.
Carson Geiger was diagnosed at the age of seven with a mild form of FG Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that can cause physical anomalies and developmental delays. Although he has been in school since he was two, Geiger reads and writes at a second grade level. He is usually sick five months of the year with upper respiratory and intestinal problems.
Geiger started his career in the Special Olympics a bit later in his life, at the age of 17. He’s now 21, and Kerri Geiger said that the program has already changed her son’s life.
“He has become a little more independent, cause we aren’t with him all the time, especially when he goes out to the games,” Kerri Geiger said. “He’s got friends, he’s happier and it’s like he has a good life. Truly, he does. Before then he hung out with us a lot, and we were worried about him meeting new friends. We ask ourselves a lot why we didn’t start this earlier. It’s been wonderful, just wonderful.”
Carson Geiger’s social life has expanded since he joined the Special Olympics. He goes to movies, plays video games and hangs out with his Special Olympics.
And, he said proudly, he now has a girlfriend.
“Her name is Ashley Rasmussen,” he said with a grin. “We just started hanging out.”
At his last count, Geiger said he had won 15 gold medals in various snowboarding competitions around the state. His goal is to make it to the world games.
Geiger is now training for the Utah Special Olympics Winter Games, which will be held at Powder Mountain beginning March 24.
He works closely with different trainers every week to prepare, but Bryner said not all of the coaches can keep up with Geiger on the mountain — and sometimes he teaches them.
Both the Geigers and the Greenhalghs are happy that the Logan Special Olympics program is run by USU students.
“Those guys are awesome. You couldn’t ask for better people.” Kerri Geiger said. “He loves those guys.”
Marie Greenhalghs agreed. “It’s amazing. It’s his peer group; it gives him people to look up to. Those kids go the extra mile,” she said.
Bryner said the Special Olympics team is always looking for more volunteers. According to Bryner, most have an incredible experience.
“Most of our volunteers, after they have done it for a season they keep coming back,” he said. “It changes lives. You get to see someone accomplish something they didn’t think they were going to be able to do. We can all learn from that.”
Abbie Lewis, Adam Barkley, Amanda Morgan, Amy Nelson, Danielle Hayes and Katelyn Swain contributed to this report.
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