GREEN BAY, Wis. — An athletics organization in Brown County has earned the opportunity to compete at nationals.
What You Need To Know
- Each athlete on the team has a disability defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- The team is being led by a teenager who is the head coach
- Legacy is ranked in the top five in the world and in the running for the number one spot
- The world competition starts April 26
19-year-old head coach Chloe Ambrosius has been around the sport of tumbling since she was seven.
Now, as a teenager, she is the head coach of the Fusion Athletics Legacy team. The team is made up of athletes with disabilities as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Ambrosius said coaching the team is very rewarding.
“There’s definitely challenges with working with a team [with] different learning styles and everything,” said Ambrosius. “What keeps me coming back is just knowing how much these kids love this sport, how much [coming] into this gym means to them and how much just hanging out with each other brings them so much joy.”
She said the team is important to her because she has grown up with some of the athletes on the squad.
One of them is David Mrotek. His position is the back base on the legacy team.
He said he is proud that his seven years of hard work have paid off.
“People that I can work with, that I can bond with in order to first to reach a common goal,” said Mrotek.
Ambrosius said she makes sure everyone is valued and gets a chance to participate on the team. She surprised them with photos and t-shirts ahead of the national competition.
Staci Athey has a daughter on the legacy team. She said this group means a lot to her and all the athletes on the team.
“I think it’s very important because a lot of times these kids are somewhat left out of things,” said Athey. “This is a way for them to all get together and to learn about each other and a way that they can actually do something that they can be proud of and practice hard at.”
The team put its finishing touches on their routines at the final practice of the season.
Ambrosius said no matter what happens at the national competition, this team brings tears to her eyes.
“I love the inclusion piece. People on the outside think they’re not fully able to do everything,” said Ambrosius. “They think that they’re like kind of restricted to do stuff. Once they step out onto this floor, they just all light up with their energy and excitement and just love everything that we do.”
Ambrosius said while the team continues to achieve great things at competitions, the main impact might just be what the team is able to accomplish together.
The squad is in the running to be ranked number one in the world. Their routine will be evaluated against the other top five squads on April 26.