​Clatsop County Special Olympic athletes added to their growing medal collection last weekend in Corvallis at the Oregon Summer Games. The July 10 – 12 competition was the final stop on the 2026 Special Olympics summer schedule.“Overall the athletes had a great time down in Corvallis,” Special Olympics Coordinator David McAloney said. “Our athletes competed really hard and seeing them come home with awards is a great thrill for the coaches and volunteers.”AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe track and field team took home seven gold medals, nine silver medals and one bronze. The bocce team brought home a gold, a silver, two bronze medals and a sportsmanship award. In addition, some of the athletes also placed in fourth and sixth places, all getting a winner’s spot on the podium.The performances capped off a winning summer season for local Special Olympic athletes.2011 Astoria High School graduate Brittney Clarke and 2018 Astoria graduate Jacob McCarr recently competed in the 2026 USA Games, which took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota from June 20 to June 27. The USA Games are the National Championships of Special Olympics and they feature athletes from all 50 states. In total, the event featured 3,000 athletes. Clarke won gold in the 400 meter walk, and medaled in both the 4 x 100 meter relay and mini javelin. McCarr was also a member of the silver medal winning 4 x 100 relay team.In Corvallis, Clatsop County’s representation was a big presence. The county sent 12 athletes to compete in the track and field portion and eight competed in bocce ball. McAloney highlighted the strength of his bocce team.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“We sent four partner teams of two and ended up getting a medal of each color,” he said. “We had one team get gold, one get silver and also received a sportsmanship award. This was big for us because one of our athletes struggles when she doesn’t get an award. We also had two teams take home bronze medals.”The bocce team of Jesse Banks and Jerry Allen won gold, Jackie Bleech and Nikki Fletcher won silver plus the sportsmanship award. The teams of Ben Johnson/David Killion and Brandi Higgins/Angelica Lizarraga won bronze medals.Though there were a lot of outstanding individual performances, said McAloney. But he said he was most proud of the growth shown by his athletes, and not only on the competition fields. This past weekend was the first time some of them had ever been on a bus or stayed in a dorm. Seeing athletes in his group handle that so well illustrated personal growth, he said.“We asked a few of the athletes to get out of their comfort zone and try new things this year,” he said. “Seeing them ride the bus and stay in the dorms with us is great progress in their lives.”AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn addition, there were more participants because of the addition of bocce ball to the games. McAloney said it brought out many more athletes who had never participat