Park City and Utah swimmers qualify for Special Olympics USA competition

C.J. Haerter training in his home town of Park City to swim at national event for Special Olympics USA. Photo: Muggins Haerter

PARK CITY, Utah — Four Utah swimmers are training for the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games, set for June 20-26 in Minneapolis.

Pictured above from left to right is Team Utah: Lane Cadmore, C.J. Haerter, Abigail Cheshire and Jordan Barlow. Ava Jennings sits on the end; she’ll join the team in June as assistant coach. The group says they’re looking forward to participating in the opening and closing ceremonies almost as much as the racing itself.

Coach Wendy Harris, seen in the video above watching Haerter train, lives in Vernal and is a former decades-long high school swim coach in the Salt Lake Valley. She currently trains other Special Olympics coaches through a partnership with the Michael Phelps Foundation.

Because the athletes live in different parts of Utah, practices rotate around the state. Some of the swimmers have competed at the state level as far south as Cedar City.

Cadmore loves jumping off the high diving board, as seen in the video above — so much so that she climbed out, went back up the ladder and did it again and again. She smiled wider and seemed braver and more empowered at the top of the ladder than she had minutes earlier, when she nervously told TownLift about how much she enjoys swimming and how she’s looking forward to making new friends in Minnesota.

With prom season upon us, Jennings and Haerter are no strangers to the spotlight. The couple was voted Park City High School prom king and queen in 2021 and have been together ever since. Jennings lives at the Bridge 21 house in Park City and recently competed in the first unified DanceSport championship with Special Olympics. She works at Deer Valley Resort, and Haerter works at Lucky Ones Coffee in the Park City Library.

The swimmers will compete in coed events at the USA Games. They range in age from teenagers to young adults and train and compete year-round in multiple sports, including skiing, golf and bowling.

Haerter’s sister Rachael will join the whole family and the other Utah families traveling to Minneapolis to cheer on the team. She’ll also be there volunteering on staff with a Utah flag football delegation at the Games.

Donations to Special Olympics of Utah can be made  here.

Park City residents’ experience hosting national-level sporting events is also in demand. Those interested in volunteering for the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games can learn more here.