Osborn Competes in GLASA Great Lakes Games

Sault High’s incoming senior Johnny Osborn recently competed in the multi day adaptive sports event put on by the Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association in partnership with The Hartford. GLASA is a nonprofit organization based out of Lake Forest, IL, that serves participants ages three and up. Athletes have primary physical or visual disabilities, such as amputation, cerebral palsy, dwarfism, muscular dystrophy, spinal cord injury, or cerebrovascular accident. GLASA also offers specialized programming to injured military veterans. The multi day event provided a continuum of competition for the developmental to elite Paralympic athlete.

Osborn, who has been competing in cross country and track and field through middle and high school first heard about GLASA from Monica Aho, a physical therapist from Houghton, who has been an integral part of the adaptive racing movement in Michigan. She not only promotes GLASA, but I Am An Athlete, Too, which is a movement to integrate athletes with disabilities into school sports. When asked what drew him to this particular competition, Osborn replied “I wanted to go down and compete because the event was an adaptive-only meet. There were roughly 60 athletes there. It gave me a good learning experience and it was a stepping stone to what the Paralympics could look like. I also got to see my friends in Track.” Osborn has had a number of high school track and field meets where he has competed against his longtime friend, Jim Bennett out of Marquette.

Osborn competed in three track events, the 100m, 200m and 400m dash, and one field event, the shot put. He was awarded first place in each event, in his classification level. Classification in adaptive sports places athletes with similar abilities in the same class. The competition also allowed the athletes to meet professional athletes, Olympic athletes and world record holders, some of whom are now coaches for various adaptive sports. “My favorite parts were playing wheelchair football with the Chicago Bears Wheelchair NFL players meeting Anthony Morgan the retired Chicago Bears player. Meeting the University of Illinois Adaptive Track team & Daniel Romanchuk. I also beat my friend Jim Bennent in the 200-meter dash for the first time!”

This event is only the beginning of a busy summer for Osborn. “The next things I’m doing this summer is going to the University of Michigan for their Adaptive meet. I also have to finish my Eagle Scout Rank. I have two merit badges and the Eagle Scout Project paperwork left. I am training for the XC Country season.”

For more information on adaptive sports refer to GLASA.org, or I Am an Athlete, Too on Facebook.

Photo credit: Andrea Osborn