| | Published July 31st, 2024
| Lamorinda's track team the Avengers are back
| | | Submitted by Lupi Gutierrez Beagle |  | | From left: Aimee Gee, Melinda Cooper, Sara Ratchford,?Izaiah Garcia, Andrew Beagle, Simon Keenan, Elan Grant Photos Lupi Gutierrez Beagle |
Olympians track and field team known as the Avengers returned with a vengeance at the 2024 NorCal Special Olympics Summer Games track & field event. The Games were hosted the last weekend in June by Santa Clara State University, where opening ceremonies kicked off the annual event Friday night with the Parade of Athletes at Stevens Stadium Buckshaw Field, followed by the 2024 Law Enforcement Torch Run.
Athletes from over thirty California counties were represented to compete in the largest local competition, highlighting thousands of athletes and coaches coming together in the spirit of competition and inclusion.
Participating for the Lamorinda team were four Contra Costa athletes with a mighty combination of intensity, perseverance and passion for their respective events. The team secured six gold and four silver medals between them.
Aimee Gee, 23, is the veteran of the team and won gold in both shot put and in her first ever turbo javelin competition. She also competed in the 100-meter where she took silver.
Melinda Briones, 32, who played softball in the 2015 Games, recognized her heats were stacked at her first track & field Summer Games. She received participation in shot put and placed fourth in her first time competing in the turbo javelin, just missing a bronze medal. Briones also placed fifth in the 100-meter.
Andrew Beagle, 15, a rising sophomore and wrestler at Miramonte High School, returned to his second Summer Games. Beagle took gold in his preferred event, the turbo javelin, with a throwing distance of 13.65 meters. He placed silver in both the running long jump and in the 100-meter.
Incoming Miramonte High School Freshman Simon Keenan, who competed in the swimming portion of the 2023 Games last year, switched over to participate with the Avengers in his first track and field showing. Keenan, who is the youngest on the team, returned home with three Gold Medals in the 100-meter, turbo javelin, and running long jump.
The Avengers also competed in the 100-meter relay for the first time as a team. After a referee's false start, Keenan ran his entire leg before he was stopped. Once the race resumed, Keenan ran it again with all three baton handoffs flawlessly executed. Beagle closed and caught the other team with incredible speed and was just edged out by literally a tenth of a second. A great effort from all four legs. |
 | | Team members: Andrew Beagle, Melinda Briones, Aimee Gee, Simon Keenan Photos Lupi Gutierrez Beagle |  | | KayleeRae Walls Photos Lupi Gutierrez Beagle | | | | | | | | | |
Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA