Liam Price gets set to start a race during the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin last month.
Submitted photo | Special Olympics Indiana
Every medal Liam Price brings home has its own distinctive story behind it.
The 21st of his swimming career is no exception.
Price, who resides in Greenwood, secured a silver medal at the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin, Germany by swimming the opening leg of the 200-meter medley relay.
The relay team from host Germany won the event with a time of 3 minutes, 2.93 seconds, while the USA finished in 3:07.48. China (3:17.41) was a distant third.
Price, the only athlete from Indiana selected, swam the backstroke. Approximately 6,500 athletes representing 190 countries took part in the World Games, an undertaking requiring the assistance of some 18,000 volunteers.
The 21-year-old, a 2020 Center Grove graduate who has autism and Tourette’s syndrome, competed individually as well. He took sixth in the 100 backstroke and eighth in the 400 freestyle.
A Special Olympian since 2016, Price had been able to size up the competition at both state and national levels. However, dipping one’s toe into the pool at the Schwimm-und Sprunghalle im Eurosportspark (SSE), the largest natatorium in Europe, carries with it unique challenges.
“It was completely different,” said Liam’s father Jon Price, who traveled to Germany to cheer on his son. “The overall message I was getting from a lot of the athletes is that they were nervous because the whole world was watching.”
Liam Price, who’ll soon begin his senior year at the University of Indianapolis, majoring in communications with a concentration in public relations, uses exercise — whether it’s swimming, weightlifting, running or something else — to combat anxiety.
His focus on swimming started when he was 14. His medal breakdown as a Special Olympian to this point includes 17 from state games competition, three on the national stage and, now, one from the World Games.
The opportunity to be part of a global event enabled Price and his Team USA teammates to take in the sights and sounds of Berlin. Among the sightseeing destinations were the United States Embassy, the Brandenburg Gate and Potsdamer Platz.
“To be over there, I was a little bit nervous at first because there were a lot of people I hadn’t competed against,” said Price, who specializes in the 25- and 50-meter backstroke but swam slightly out of his comfort zone in an attempt to benefit Team USA.
“Honestly, the best part was getting to converse with people from other countries who spoke English.”
Swimming has been a sport at the Special Olympics World Games since 1968, and includes all four strokes — freestyle, butterfly, backstroke and breaststroke.
Price was one of approximately 475 swimmers from around the world competing.
Opening ceremonies for the 2023 Special Olympics World Games took place inside Olympiastadion, the same facility that hosted the 1936 Summer Olympics that were highlighted by the four-gold magnificence of American sprinter Jesse Owens.
Last month’s games marked the first time in 87 years that the Olympic torch was lit inside the facility.
All in all, it was a nine-day whirlwind Price won’t soon forget.
“I felt like I did extremely well,” Price said. “There were a lot of great swimmers, but my goal was to get at least one gold. We fell just a little bit short.”
