ONTARIO — Some of the greatest athletes in track & field, water polo and table tennis were competing on an international stage at the Paris Olympics Thursday afternoon.
At the same time, children at the Richland County Fair brought passion and grit to the Barnyard Olympics, an annual event hosted in the show arena.
Katlyn Niese emceed the event, which she competed in herself as a youngster.
“My family is all part of the Farm Bureau, it’s been 20-plus years that we’ve been involved,” she said. “My siblings and I were really involved in 4-H, so some of the older kids now, we’ve known since they were little.
“My nephew participated in the Barnyard Olympics this year and my siblings and I were really involved growing up, so it’s a fun generational tradition we have now.”
Kids were split into four age groups for the competition — 8 years old and under, 9 to 11, 12 to 14 and 13 to 18 years old.
“Though this year coincides with the Summer Games, Niese said the Barnyard Olympics always draw a big crowd.
“It gives the kids a chance to decompress after showing their animals for a week — we schedule it after their shows and before the small animals sale,” she said. “It’s really nice watching them enjoy themselves and play some fun games with their friends.”
The games included a two-person obstacle course where teams had to fill a feed pail with water and maneuver through hay bales trying not to spill. The obstacle race was followed by a sack race and a water-balloon toss.
This year marked the first Barnyard Olympics in the new, air-conditioned show arena.
“We used to do an egg toss, but we’ve replaced it with the water-balloon toss,” Niese said. “Some of the eggs would hit the ceiling and we thought they probably don’t want yolk on the ceiling of a new arena.”
The Richland County Farm Bureau sponsors the Barnyard Olympics each year. The local farm bureau’s organization director Abra Dunn said volunteers like Niese make the event happen.
“They’re integral to putting on these events,” she said.
Dunn said the new arena’s speakers allow the team to play music and “make it more fun and inviting.”
“It’s a lot of fun every year,” she said. “It’s inspiring to see the next generation coming up and it’s nice to watch them build relationships with each other and make really good memories.”
