2020 Special Olympics Winter Games a Boost for Athletes, Wenatchee Valley

Athleticism and determination were on display this weekend as the Wenatchee valley hosted the 2020 Washington State Special Olympics Winter Games.

Director of the 2020 Winter Games Stephen Opland explained that the competition is an opportunity for athletes to display their skill and the hard work they've put into training.

"It's beneficial for the athletes. It's beneficial for the community here in Wenatchee. We come over and we basically take over Wenatchee." Opland said, "We commandeered almost all of the hotels. It's pretty slim pickings by the time we get done housing all of our teams and volunteers. The community just loves it. They dive right in. Wenatchee has been hosting us for years and years."

Opland estimates 3,00 to 4,000 people visited the area for the three-day competition.

Every athlete that competed in this year's winter games had to qualify through regional competitions.

Roughly 1,200 participants competed in the games this year in sports such as alpine snowboarding, figure skating, speed skating and basketball.