Local athletes earn medals at Special Olympics USA Games

Local athletes, including Hancock County native Kevin Rates, earned medals at the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games in Minneapolis, which concluded June 26.

Rates, 42, of Hawesville, helped Team Kentucky’s Owensboro-based flag football team to a bronze medal finish. The son of Leon and Peggy Rates, he scored a rushing touchdown and had an interception in Kentucky’s 39-24 win over Pennsylvania in the bronze medal game June 25.

Kentucky reached the bronze medal game after a 49-12 loss to Indiana in the semifinal round. Pennsylvania had also defeated Kentucky by one point earlier in pool play.

Hunter Glenn threw a touchdown pass to Caden Glenn in the bronze medal game, while Zach Lindsey, Walt Drake, Rates and Isaiah Smith each rushed for touchdowns.

Rates, an Athlete Ambassador who has participated in Special Olympics since 2003, previously competed at the 2022 USA Games, where he won a silver medal in shot put and helped Kentucky win gold in the 4×100-meter relay.

In bocce, Rockport’s Brett Thompson won two gold medals. Thompson closed out the match after trailing 9-8 and put together a final-frame surge to earn a 12-9 singles victory over Northern California’s Anthony Puma.

He also teamed with his father, Jeff Thompson, to win Kentucky’s first Unified bocce gold medal earlier in the week.

Thompson additionally competed in a four-person Unified bocce team event alongside Jeff Thompson and Megan and Lesley Dineen of Paint Lick, and the group finished with a bronze medal in the team competition. It was the first time Kentucky has fielded a team in that event at the USA Games.

The Games featured nearly 3,000 athletes from all 50 states.

Kim Johnson of Owensboro, who serves as Area 2 director and local coordinator, was part of the Team Kentucky staff and traveled with the delegation. She has been involved with Special Olympics for more than 30 years. Her husband, Jeff Johnson, a Hancock County native, is a longtime Special Olympics coach.

The local Special Olympics program serving Hancock, Daviess and Muhlenberg counties offers year-round opportunities in multiple sports, including softball, flag football, bowling, basketball, cheerleading, aquatics, track and field and bocce, as well as a Young Athletes program for ages 2-7. For more information, to participate or to volunteer, contact Johnson at [email protected] or 270-314-7621, follow Special Olympics Kentucky on Facebook, or visit specialolympics.org.

The next major event is the Special Olympics Unified Football World Cup, scheduled for July 6-11 in Paris.