Mission CISD was one of 15 teams from across the Rio Grande Valley that made the trip to San Antonio to compete in the Special Olympics Summer games. Special Olympics of Texas celebrated 50 years of the Summer Games (1969-2019) over the weekend of May 2nd through May 5th. They celebrated by hosting the games for the first time ever at Morgan’s Wonderland in San Antonio, Texas. Morgan’s Wonderland is the world’s first ultra-accessible theme park. Special Olympics collaborated with the city’s officials and Gordon Hartman, owner of the theme park, and made it available for all athletes from across the state. They also opened Toyota Field, home of the San Antonio Football Club, and hosted the opening ceremonies which were presented by Eva Longoria.
Eight committed and dedicated athletes made the decision to represent Mission CISD, and they represented well! Not only did they earn various medals, but coaches, athletes, and spectators praised and commended their outstanding performances throughout the weekend. The athletes truly enjoyed every minute of the event and made memories that will last a lifetime. One of the highlights of the event was the 4X 100 M relay finals, which took place on Sunday May 5th.
Team Mission was looking to repeat their area competition performance held in Weslaco the previous weekend in which they earned the gold. Now, they were up against schools from across the state and in a close but thrilling race, Team Mission earned the gold once again and became state champions! Some of the other events that the athletes participated in consisted of the standing long jump, softball throw, and 100 M run. Athlete names, school, and event awards are as follows:
- Bryan Arellano from Veterans Memorial High School: 1st place in the 4X 100 M relay, 2nd place in the standing long jump, and 4th place in the 100 M race.
- Joel Bravo from Mission High School: 1st place in the 4X 100 M relay, 1st place in the standing long jump, and 3rd place in the 100 M race.
- Marcus Eguia from Mission High School: 2nd place in the 100 M race and 2nd place in the softball throw.
- Javier Patino from Veterans Memorial High School: 2nd place in the standing long jump, and 4th place in the 100 M race.
- Emily Gonzalez-Perez from Mission High School: 1st place in the 100 M race and 2nd place in the softball throw.
- Julian Rodriguez from Kenneth White Jr. High School: 1st place in the 4X 100 M relay, 1st place in the standing long jump, and 2nd place in the 100 M race.
- Frankie J. Torres from Veterans Memorial High School: 1st place in the 4X 100 M relay, 2nd place in the standing long jump, and 2nd place in the 100 M race.
- Frankie Villalobos Jr. from Mission High School: 2nd place in the standing long jump, and 3rd place in the 100 M race.
In total, Mission CISD earned 7 gold medals, 9 silver medals, 2 bronze medals, and two 4th place finishes. Mission CISD’s Special Olympics coaches would like to thank everyone that worked to to make this event possible. We hope to continue participating in these events and cannot wait to do it again next year. Once again, congratulations to all of our athletes on a job well done at the 2019 Summer Games!