After three days, 13 events and dozens of competitors – some of them well into their eighties – the Summit County 50-Plus Winter Games has crowned its inaugural King and Queens.
Thomas Kullman, of the 60-69 division, was the lone King of the Games. He was crowned after competing in eight events, Feb. 8-10, including two Nordic races and the biathlon on the closing day of the Games yesterday at Frisco Nordic Center.
Three women competed in six events each: Disa Kullman (60-69), Nancy Nicholson (60-69) and the Queen Supreme, 76-year-old Claire Carren. She was often the only person competing in her age group.
“Congratulations to our athletes, who put in tremendous efforts and incredible performances,” organizer Guy Gadomski writes in his recap.
The King and Queen titles had little to do with performance and everything to do with perseverance. These four competed in more events than anyone else at the Games.
Maybe, then, the title of Duke should go to Chris Johns, who competed in seven events for the men’s 70-79 division, taking home four golds and one silver. It was the biggest medal haul for any individual athlete.
Beyond the King and Queen
Yesterday’s biathlon was one of the most popular events of the Games with 23 competitors skiing and shooting at Frisco Nordic.
King Kullman took the gold, skiing faster and shooting (almost) better than anyone. He missed twice, but Tim Schlough missed only once.
One of the eldest competitors, 80-something Sharon Crawford, wowed the crowd with the best women’s biathlon score. She beat women 30 years her junior.
Colorado SnowSports Hall of Famer Jon Kreamelmeyer won gold in the 3-kilometer Nordic classic event, racing on his one good leg. Kreamelmeyer, known as J.C., lost his other leg to amputation in 2021.
Earlier in the Games, on Monday morning at Keystone, skimo racers Mike Hagen and Erick Broecker finished three and four laps, respectively, for gold. Queen Nicholson finished two laps for the women’s title.
Later Monday, on the ice at Keystone Pond, Stuart Reddel clocked the fastest time on the speed oval before the ice turned slushy. Queen Kullman and Pasi Virta won hockey shoot gold.
The Games opened on Sunday with alpine ski events at Keystone, where Queen Nicholson and Tim Boulay won giant slalom gold. 76-year-old Ken Raggio won the Rally Race.
But it wasn’t just the athletes making the Games happen. More than 60 volunteers showed up, some of them arriving at 4:30 a.m. to mark the uphill ski-mountaineering course.
Photos via Summit50Plus.org.