Local Athlete Headed to World Games
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Posted by: Karli Luchterhand
 Western Racine County can boast of having a unique athlete whom you won't find in the high school box scores or featured in our sports section.
In fact, she is an Olympic athlete.
Her sport is cross-country skiing. She also swims in the summer and likes to ride her bike when the weather is nice.
Becky Henline, 37, will represent Wisconsin at the 2009 Special Olympic World games in Boise, Idaho, in February.
Henline is a native of Grand Rapids, Mich., and has been skiing for more than 20 years. She works at Shepherds Ministries as a kitchen helper and lives off campus with a roommate who is also a Special Olympics athlete.
She has participated in Special Olympics for the past 13 years.
In August 2005, she moved to the Village of Union Grove. There she met a living skills instructor, Cindy Weitzel, who is also a coach for Special Olympics in this area. Henline picked up skiing and swimming once again and enjoyed having goals to strive for.
Henline said she joined Special Olympics because she wanted something fun to do, but she has gained experience and knowledge that have helped her set goals for life and continually push her to accomplish them.
Last month, she traveled to Copper Mountain, Colo., for the Special Olympics Team USA Training Camp. There she participated in the cross country skiing training and team-building activities with 355 athletes and 85 coaches from across the country.
 The camp also offered a variety of coach and athlete meetings and training for alpine skiing, floor hockey, figure skating, snowboarding, snowshoe racing and speed skating.
"It is so exciting to be going to the World Games," Henline said. "I have never been before and was shocked when I was chosen. I couldn't speak."
Athletes learned about what the World Games in Idaho would be like. They were fitted for their uniforms and there were photo shoots for each sport.
Henline said she has participated in Special Olympics because she loves encouraging her teammates and is inspired by the sound of the crowd.
"My favorite part of Special Olympics is being cheered on," she said. "It makes me feel good to be cheered. It makes me feel special and makes me go faster when I am tired."
It was Henline's performance at the Wisconsin State Games in Wausau last February that qualified her for the World Games. She captured gold in the 1K with a time of 5:38 and got the silver in the 3K after a 10:03 run.
She is also a Special Olympic swimmer during the summer. Her events include the individual 50-meter freestyle and the 100-meter backstroke events and the 50-meter and 100-meter free-style relays. She also has received awards in soccer, bowling and basketball.
Early on, Henline's parents encouraged her to be active and their property in Grand Rapids lent itself to skiing.
She first got connected to Shepherds Ministries when she was in Englewood, Fla., where her parents also have a home. One day after a church service, Henline and her parents met a field representative from Shepherds Ministries who told them that Henline could enjoy her independence in Union Grove with the oversight of a Christian organization.
For more information on the 2009 World Games, visit www.2009worldgames.org.
Written by Gautam Singh for the Westine Report. January 9, 2009
To see Becky's scores and biography, please click here.
|
|
Print Page
Email to a Friend
RSS