ROCKFORD, Mich. — This weekend marked the 2024 Meijer state games of Michigan. A state wide event that brings athletes of all ages and abilities to a competitive field in their respective sport.
The opening ceremony on Friday also brought to two several Olympians from the mitten who chatted with us to share their excitement for the event.
“You do the work ahead of time. You don’t skip any workouts, you do everything that you’re suppose to do to set yourself up to be successful and you come out here and have a good time and trust the process,” said Nick Baumgartner.
Friday night kicked off the 2024 summer state games hosted by Meijer and the West Michigan Sports Commission.
The annual games are a multi-sport, Olympic style event event that welcomes athletes regardless of age or ability. From archery, to softball, and everything in between, athletes from around the state flocked to Rockford for this years event.
On site to give the opening remarks was Michigander and Olympic gold medalist, Nick Baumgartner.
“Sport is so important for kids. It teaches them how to set goals, how to fight through adversity. One, how to win. But most importantly, how to be a good loser. Stuff like this is key for them and their growth and for their future success in whatever they do,” said Baumgartner.
His journey to earning a gold medal took four trips to the Olympic Games. He loves carrying his medal around with him to help inspire others.
“People always give me crap because they’re like ‘I bet you’ve got your medal in your pocket’ and I do, and it’s for a reason. When you hand this to a kid and you watch them stand there in awe, and watch their eyes open up. You see the possibilities open up in their mind and then they feel like they can take on the world. I then feel like ‘you can take on the world!’ People think I should keep this locked away but it does way more good sharing it with people and using it to inspire more stories like mine,” said Baumgartner.
Also at the kick off was Kentwood native and shot put Olympian, Tia Brooks-Wannemacher. She was thrilled to see the amount of participants at this years games.
“It’s unheard of, to have so many different athletes, at different skill levels, in one event is unheard of. People can see what they can aspire to do. They can get started, people who are established and seasoned are able to compete so it’s cool to see. I’ve never experienced it before, this is my first state games, so I’m excited,” said Brooks-Wannemacher.
Tia competed in the 2016 summer games in Rio, finishing 4th in shot put. She never thought that she would end up competing on the world’s biggest stage, but wants kids to know that it’s possible for them to do it too.
“I still pinch myself sometimes, never in a million years would I have imagined having that opportunity but to see that and for them (kids) to see someone who grew up here, who went to Kentwood be able to reach that goal is amazing and I think that it’s inspiring. My LLC ‘Beyond An Athlete’ is committed to breaking down the barriers that students have to become athletes. We’re hoping to gather some data in the community to help bridge the gap. I think that anyone who wants to compete, should be able to compete and you never know. You might reach to that level,” said Brooks-Wannemacher.
Majority of the games did happen this weekend, but golf and rowing will wrap up later this week. Athletes who finished 1st, 2nd or 3rd in their event and then invited to compete at the State Games of American later this summer in San Diego, California.
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