The Youth Olympics, a popular event put on annually by the Wood County Prosecutor’s Office, will not be
held this year.
“We plan on bringing back a rejuvenated and improved program next year,” said Prosecutor Paul Dobson in a
press release. “To that end, we have been in discussions with other organizations to partner with us in
continuing this important, educational and traditional event.”
Using this year to reorganize, the prosecutor’s office has begun to build partnerships with organizations
such as the Wood County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board, to jointly host the
event again next year.
The Youth Olympics is for area fourth and fifth-graders and is annually held in March. The 500 spots
quickly fill up and almost 200 volunteers help run the event, held at the Perry Field House on the
Bowling Green State University campus.
For 20 years, the event has allowed participants from different school districts to come together to
exchange cooperation and teamwork skills, supporting its motto, “competition without conflict.”
In past years, events have included a pipeline relay where participants had to use teamwork to pass a
tennis ball through pieces of PVC pipe, an obstacle course ping-pong ball toss, relay race, scooter
slalom and plunger ball, where participants had to maneuver through traffic cones while holding a
plunger with a soccer ball on top.
The event also has drawn speakers, including Bruce Gradkowski, former quarterback with the NFL and
University of Toledo, and Steve Cramer, who does basketball training camps.