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The 2024 Special Olympics North Carolina (SONC) Fall Tournament concluded Nov. 23 in the Charlotte area, ending a weekend of competition for nearly 1,300 athletes and Unified partners from across the state, according to Keith L. Fishburne, SONC President/CEO.
Unified partners are individuals without intellectual disabilities who train and compete alongside Special Olympics athletes.
Fall Tournament is SONC’s second largest state-level competition, hosted at venues in Charlotte and Concord. Athletes competed in bocce, cycling, golf, roller skating, softball, soccer and tennis.
To ensure fair competition, athletes were placed in competition divisions based on age, gender and ability level. Gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded to the top three finishers in each division, followed by fourth through eighth-place ribbons.
Athletes who competed in the 2024 SONC Fall Tournament represented the following counties/agencies: Alamance, Alleghany, Avery, Beaufort/Hyde, Brunswick, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Carteret, Clay, Catawba, Cleveland, Craven, Cumberland, Dare, Davidson, Davie, Durham, Forsyth, Franklin, Gaston, Guilford/Greensboro, Guilford/High Point, Harnett, Iredell, Johnston, Lake Norman, Lee, Lincoln, Macon, Mecklenburg, Moore, Murdoch Center, Nash, New Hanover, Onslow, Orange, Pitt, Qualla Boundary, Rowan, Stanly, Surry, Union, Wake, Watauga, Wayne, and Wilkes.
The following athletes from Stanly competed:
• Team Stanly: Jonas Richard Bost, Softball Individual Skills, Gold Medal; Sam Dale Poplin, Softball Individual Skills, Bronze Medal; Colby Mark Yow, Softball Individual Skills, Gold Medal.
• Stanly Bocce Barons: Alan Stickney, Bocce Doubles, Bronze Medal; Bruce Stickney, Bocce Doubles, Bronze Medal.
• Stanly ChewBocce: Elliott Schmehl, Bocce Doubles, Gold Medal; Beth Elizabeth Townsend, Bocce Doubles, Gold Medal;
• Stanly Hathcock-Odell: Jamie Lee Hathcock, Golf Level 2, Unified Team Play, Silver Medal; David Odell (Unified partner), Golf Level 2 Unified Team Play, Silver Medal.
• Stanly High Rollers: Harry L. Cohen, Bocce Team, Silver Medal; Micah A. Cunningham, Bocce Team, Silver Medal; Alex Hunt, Bocce Team, Silver Medal; Clint Edwards Phillips, Bocce Team, Silver Medal.
• Stanly Hot Shots: Zachary Ryan Lowder, Bocce Doubles, Gold Medal; Bryce Ray Neal, Bocce Doubles, Gold Medal.
• Stanly Rogue Rollers: Adam Christopher Hupp, Bocce Team, Bronze Medal; Angela M. Kirk, Bocce Team, Bronze Medal; Jonathon Martin, Bocce Team, Bronze Medal; James Alan Cody Stout, Bocce Team, Bronze Medal.
• Stanly Wilson-Flowers: Willis E. Flowers (Unified partner), Golf Level 2 Unified Team Play, Silver Medal; Caleb Wilson, Golf Level 2 Unified Team Play, Silver Medal.