Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. – Kegan Zimmerman, a St. Mary’s County resident, recently returned home after participating in the 2019 Special Olympics World Games, held in Abu Dhabi for the first time. His two-week long journey introduced him to a new culture, many amazing sights and the opportunity to compete in three cycling events, taking home a medal in each.

TheBayNet.com interviewed a very excited Kegan before the world games when he was still raising money to attend the event. By the end of the fundraising period, Kegan raised well over his $10,000 goal through the help of some local businesses and the community.

“More than anything I was happy to go somewhere I’d never been and have the experience [of competing in the world games],” said Kegan during our interview after he returned.

Kegan’s journey began March 6 in Baltimore, where he met up with his three fellow Maryland Olympians before heading to New York for the night. When the sun rose the next day, Kegan met up with the rest of the U.S. team at JFK Airport before departing on their 12-hour journey to Dubai. “When we got to the airport, we had to wait for them to get through 315 bags of luggage [belonging to the members of the U.S. team]. I got a little seasick and the vents didn’t work, but I got to experience a 12-hour plane ride.”

Upon landing in Dubai, Kegan experienced a “culture shock” as he took in his surroundings. “Everything was different, it’s nothing like the U.S.” One of the shocks came after Kegan got to his hotel room when he saw what appeared to be a “playhouse sink.” Kegan called his father who explained, through some chuckles, what a bidet was, a common fixture in middle eastern bathrooms.

Kegan, his cycling team members, and coaches remained in Dubai for four days until it was time for them to head to Abu Dhabi. During that time the crew got to explore the city, visiting landmarks like the world’s tallest building (the Burj Khalifa) and participated in events like “Healthy Athletes.” A visit to an Arabic school stood out to Kegan where he got to talk with “a lot of kids who love the U.S.A. and the U.A.E.” Kegan said that the school consisted of students of all ages and that they made him a piece of art, depicting his name in Arabic for him to take home as a souvenir.

After qualifying for their particular meets, the group headed out in vans to Abu Dhabi, a drive that is about the same as traveling from Baltimore to DC. The athletes were given a couple of days to settle in before the moment they had been waiting for, the Special Olympics opening ceremony. “I will never forget that day, it was my birthday, March 14 and the opening ceremony,” a ceremony that was televised on ESPN where Kegan was elated to receive a shout out with happy birthday wishes.

With a lot of the shock and awe of the games behind him, Kegan was ready to compete, focused on doing his best and hopeful to earn a medal. Kegan’s first event was a 5K time trial, an event he hadn’t competed in before. “I hadn’t done a time trial before, only road races. The difference is that the road race has a shotgun start but the trial is one at a time.” Not allowing his inexperience to impact his performance, Kegan won his first event of the Olympics, earning a gold medal. He went on to his second event of the day, a 10K road race, and placed second, earning him a silver medal to go along with the gold. The next day Kegan competed in a 5K road race for his final event, winning a second gold medal and finalizing his hardware for the 2019 Special Olympic Games. In total, the U.S. achieved 71 Gold Medals, 61 Silver Medals, and 71 Bronze Medals and Kegan is proud to have contributed three to that count.

“When I first got off the plane my main worry was that I didn’t know what the country was going to look like, I didn’t know how I was going to do at the competition but you are never going to know until you get on that podium… My mom was crying, I was crying, I didn’t know what to do [after winning one of his gold medals].”

Though Kegan didn’t know what to expect when he stepped foot in Dubai, he is happy that he represented his country, state, and community well. Kegan will be giving a presentation on his experience to the St. Mary’s County Commissioners on April 9 during their public forum.

Contact Jerold Massie at staffwriter@thebaynet.com.