Inaugural Wahluke Olympics a huge success

MATTAWA — The competition fierce, the crowd was a buzz with excitement and the ending Joel Dugan, Mattawa Junior High and Wahluke High School track coach said, “Was one for the record books.”

“The sound was deafening and as the starting pistol fired it was clear that Principal Langdon of Saddle Mountain Elementary had trained harder than the others and crossed the finish line with ease. And although his students were too small to carry him away to victory, they crowded around him in a school wind group hug chanting S! M! E! S M! E! as they marched back to their school.”

Mattawa Elementary dominated the girls side of the competition, producing six top finishers on the day. Morris Schott and Saddle Mountain crowned their champions each.

“Mattawa Elementary girls were fast and kicked the soccer ball extremely far with a get it up in the air and let the wind do the work strategy,” Dugan said. “

The boys side of the competition was filled with drama that was decided on the final event.

“It looked like the Morris Schott team was going to run away with the championship trophy until we looked at a photo finish which had a 5th grade boy from Saddle Mountain and a 5th grade boy from Morris Schott race to a tie,” Dugan said. “Per the rules we had a run off with the two boys and the Saddle Mountain student came out victorious.”

This event built on the excitement of the ball kick competition that had just finished tied across the board with four champions crowned at each elementary school.

“We had to defer to the newly written rule book to break the tie and the principals from the three elementary schools had to face each other in a 100 meter run off,” Dugan said. “So as the announcement came over the loud speaker the kids from all three elementary schools came screaming from all over the track chanting their principals name.”

Pride was on the line for Karl Edie from Morris Schott, Sean Langdon, Saddle Mountain, and Teri Anderson from Mattawa Elementary, and it was Langdon coming away with the win.

“The entire District needs a big shout out for putting up with the wind and cheering their classmates on,” Dugan said. “A special thanks goes out to the PE teachers for training the athletes and the WEO for buying the trophies, and the Wahluke Junior High ASB students for being the workers and volunteers for the entire event.”

This year’s event was such a success that plans for the 2018 Wahluke Olympics are already in the works.

“I hope exposing these young kids to this environment will show them how fun Track and Field is,” Dugan said. “I hope to see them on the Junior High team and someday the High School team. Go Warriors!”