A pair of 10-pin bowlers from Olds left the Canada Special Olympics 2014 Summer Games with three medals each.Mike Dougan won gold medals in doubles and team competition and a bronze in the individual category.Aaron Johnson won gold in team competition, a bronze in doubles and a bronze in the individual category.The two were from the Olds and District Special Olympics team, which was in Vancouver from July 8 to 12 for the Summer Games where 2,000 athletes competed in 11 different sports.Five five-pin bowlers from the group joined Dougan and Johnson.According to Karen Mengersen, chair of Olds and District Special Olympics, the event was everything she hoped it would be.“Oh definitely. It was a lifetime experience for many of the athletes,” Mengersen said. “We had a fantastic time. It was very busy. We were up every morning between five and 5:30 and spent every night around 10.”As the head coach of the five-pin bowling team, Mengersen did not have a chance to watch those participating in 10-pin.“It was awesome to watch our guys with my five-pin team. They didn't do fantastic. They did have some personal bests but the team as a whole did not receive a medal,” she said.Mengersen said throughout the event, the Olds contingent was complimented on its team spirit, sportsmanship and lane courtesy in a difficult environment.“You can imagine being in a bowling alley with no air conditioning. That there were some teams and coaches who complained a lot but we did not,” she said.The team played through what she called “glitches,” such as delayed starts and problems with a bus.However, Mengersen considered the games a success nonetheless.“Vancouver did an awesome job of putting this on. When you're dealing with 2,000 people and 11 different places, there's bound to be some glitches and we had an awesome time,” she said.Most of the team had never been to Vancouver before. While there, the group had a chance to explore, visiting the beach, Granville Island and taking the SkyTrain, she said.Mengersen said the games were fun for all involved.“It went very well. The athletes from all over Canada, they all made new friends. They had an awesome time.”[email protected]
