For the last five years, Joe Johnson, BI Incorporated Account Management Supervisor, has been an impressive participant in the Scottish Highland Games. The Scottish Masters Athletics International (SMAI) is organized and operated to foster international amateur sports competition for charitable and cultural purposes.
A quarter Scottish himself, while at a Highland festival in Estes Park, Colorado, years ago he watched in awe as athletes participated in stone and hammer throws, caber and shear tosses, and other similar traditional feats of strength. Joe joined the local chapter
five years ago and has been participating ever since. Early on, Joe self-trained, using YouTube videos to establish his foundation. As competition became fiercer and his interest amplified, Joe decided to fine-tune his skills by hiring field and strength coaches.
For Joe, this past year was filled with back to back competitions in Colorado, California, Wyoming, Kansas, and Arizona. Most notably, at the Colorado Scottish Festival in Edgewater he placed 2nd place in the Lightweight <200 lb. category, just one-foot shy of qualifying for the 2018 International Championships.
The next World Championships will be in Tucson, AZ, November 1 – 2, 2019 and he has a June 1, 2019 deadline to hit qualifying numbers. Joe is grateful for the support he receives from his coworkers and often tells them “thank you, but until I can qualify to compete in the World Championships, I’ll keep eating humble pie.”
To learn more about this tradition, view stats and join in support of Joe, visit:
Scottish Masters Athletics International
http://www.scottishmasters.org
North American Scottish Games Athletics
http://www.nasgaweb.com
