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Sky's the limit for two Cache athletes in Alaska for Special Olympics By
Bryce Petersen Jr.
Two Cache Valley athletes will compete in the 2001 Special Olympics World Winter Games . The event happens every four years in a different part of the world, with 2000 athletes from 80 countries competing in seven sports over eight days. Two thousand Olympians will march into Anchorage, Alaska, to begin its largest sporting event. The Anchorage Daily News reported that the Games will be "warm," "wonderful," "incredible" and "the biggest event ever staged in Anchorage." And two Cache Valley residents, Mary Dawn Waite of Hyde Park and Andrew Leatham of Logan, will be there, competing in the biggest event of their lives. Waite, a 28-year-old Hyde Park resident, will be one of 10 U.S. cross-country skiers at the Games. She has been skiing for 14 years, but according to her coach, Dave Bregenzer, her ability has improved drastically in the last three years. "I thought she had reached her ceiling," Bregenzer said. "She had been on a plateau as far as ability goes. But she kind of destroyed all that the last three years. It was a real eye-opener for me. I learned that I -- and we, as a society -- have no reason or right to put a ceiling on what disabled people can do in the workplace, in academics or in athletics." Since then, Mary Dawn has risen to a level where she can compete with anyone in the world. This won't be her first trip to Anchorage. She competed in last year's national championships, taking home a gold in the 3K race and a silver in the 1K. After her success at the state and national level, it was no surprise when she was selected last fall to represent the United States at the World Games. A 5K race has been added this year and Mary Dawn will be in it. "It's going to be different than last year," Waite said. But her goal is the same: "I want to get a gold medal." She's been training for months now. She was given a free membership to the Sports Academy and works out twice a week. Every Saturday, she skis. Her favorite spot is at the Smithfield Golf Course. "Because of all the hills," she said. Leatham, who will be one of 10 members of the U.S. snowshoe team, is newer to his sport. In fact, there was no Special Olympics snowshoe event until last year. But his progress has been phenomenal, Bregenzer said. "He's just a good athlete," Bregenzer said. "He's got great strength and great endurance. The first year the state had a snowshoeing competition, he just took every gold medal." Leatham is already somewhat of a celebrity in Logan. He's been a three-sport manager at Logan High School, watching the team's success, including this year's State Championship in football. Mike Favero, Logan's football coach, said Leatham "is Logan sports. "He probably spends more time at this than anyone else here," Favero said. "He never misses a practice and he's always here before and after everyone else." When Favero heard that Andrew's father, Brent, wanted to go to Alaska, he asked for help from players, coaches, parents and teachers to raise the money for airfare and lodging. The donations reached $1,000, enough to cover Brent's trip. "What he's doing right now is bigger than what we did this year," Favero said. "We were only competing for a state championship, he's competing for a world championship, and I thought he needed some support." Brent said he was excited to see his son compete. "I'm pretty proud of him," Brent said. "I think it's pretty neat that he got selected." Indeed, 1989 was the last time a Cache Valley resident went to the Games. That year, DeVon Loveday took home a cross-country gold. "That's the last time Logan won a state championship," Andrew says. Maybe that's a good sign. In addition to working out once a week at the Sports Academy with Bregenzer and Waite, Andrew has been working out with the football, baseball and basketball teams for all of his four years in high school. He graduates in May. As hard as the athletes are training, Anchorage has been preparing as well. According to the Anchorage Daily News, Special Olympics helped the city receive a grant $4 million from the federal office of Housing and Urban Development to improve venues. Kincaid Park, home of the snowshoeing and cross-country events, received $2.5 million to improve parking and road for the increased traffic at the Games. Weather at the Games could be scary. Or wonderful. Anchorage is gaining approximately one hour of daylight every 10 days, according to Bob Hopkins, at the National Weather Service forecast office in Anchorage. The temperature could reach the mid-50s during the week. But it is not unusual for it to dip to 25 below zero. "March usually has many bright, sunny, scenic days," Hopkins said via e-mail. "Many Alaskans consider March one of the best months of the year." Andrew is looking forward to the trip for more than medals or meeting people from all over the world. He wants to measure the grizzly in Logan's hall against another. "I want to see a real grizzly bear, see how big it is compared to the one at my school," Andrew said. "But not too close."
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