Seven New Brunswickers are headed to Austria, to take part in the upcoming Special Olympics World Winter Games being held this month.
That includes two athletes, and three coaches, and it is the biggest delegation from New Brunswick to ever attend a Special Olympics world games event.
Hey @JohnBAmes! Did u know 7 NBers are representing Canada at world’s in Austria in under a month! That makes us #nbproud! @BrianGallantNB
— Special Olympics NB (@SpecialONB) February 20, 2017
The athletes are Veronique Leblanc from Moncton, who competes in speed skating and Jennifer Jackson from Woodstock, who competes in snowshoeing.
Executive Director of Special Olympics NB Josh Astle says the athletes love to compete, but they also love to meet others, “They cheer their peers on. Our athletes want to win, just as much as our other competitive athletes, but they are probably more happy to see someone else succeed as well. They train extremely hard, and they have definitely overcome significant barriers to get them to where they are.”
There are representatives from 107 different countries, with 2700 athletes competing in Austria. The games run from March 12th until the 25th.
