During the week of June 5 through June 12, the Special Olympics USA Games were held in Orlando, Fla. as the athletes got the opportunity to showcase their talents in their respective sports.

Over 5,000 athletes and coaches from every state and the Caribbean, along with over 100,000 spectators made their way to the Sunshine State for an exciting week of events. The Games features a variety of events, with a total of 19 Olympic-style team and individual sports on display.

The goal of the Special Olympics is to celebrate the abilities of the athletes not only in the field, but in all areas of life through their display of dedication and perseverance. And through the celebration of athletes, the Special Olympics aims to create a more inclusive world where we all can “Shine As One.”

For Justin Hinds, a local North Dakota powerlifter, his trip to Orlando was a memorable one where he shined brightly. Dedication, perseverance and many more words can describe how impressive his display of talent was in The Games last week.

Hinds competed in powerlifting events on Wednesday, June 8 where he got a chance to showcase his skills in bench press, deadlifts, and combination lifting which involves both bench press and deadlifts.

He was matched up with Alex Smith and Jeremy Hughes from Arkansas, where all three athletes went through the same three rounds of exercises. The order of events was bench press first, with deadlift second and combination as the final event.

In what was an incredible display of talent for Hinds, he ended the day with a total of three gold medals, one for each event. In the bench press, he finished with a score of 145. In deadlifting, he finished with a score of 215. Lastly, in combination, he finished with a score of 360.

All the individual scores placed him at the top of his group, earning three gold medals for powerlifting in an inspiring display of abilities and accomplishments. The Sunshine State shined brighter throughout the week with Justin Hinds there.