HARPERSFIELD TOWNSHIP, Ohio — The excitement is building inside Spire Academy as the Patriot Games continue ahead of President Trump's anticipated visit Tuesday evening.
Each state, U.S. territory and some tribal nations are represented by one male and one female athlete between the ages of 14 and 17. Athletes compete in events including dodgeball, tug of war and more, with a $250,000 scholarship prize pool on the line.
Tuesday's competition featured a tug of war, basketball competition, as well as endurance and skill challenges.
"You saw the students sprint, hurdle, hang, medicine ball throw, then we wanted to challenge them and see them create strategy and see the leaders rise," Danielle Alvarez with Freedom 250 said.
Ohio's two representatives are rising juniors Liam Nies from Cincinnati and Shannon Dressler from Hudson — a lacrosse player and a swimmer — each testing their overall athletic ability beyond their individual sports.
"You got to make the best of every situation here — don't slip up," Nies said
"I'm so happy it's here — since I've competed here before," Dressler said. "It's kind of just insane — be on land because I'm not a runner by any means. I'm not really good at catching balls. My main thing is swimming, endurance and strength in the water."
For Nies' mother, Kathleen Nies, the whole experience came as a bit of a surprise.
"He put the application in and we're like — OK, that was fun," mother Kathleen Nies said. "Never expected to hear anything. And then we heard about it — and in Ohio?"
Danielle Alvarez with Freedom 250 explained how Ohio ended up hosting the games.
"It was an easy pick, SPIRE was so welcoming, Ohio was so welcoming, and the President had been here 10 years prior," Alvarez said.
Then-candidate Trump campaigned at SPIRE in 2016, just days before the election.
The president is expected to be in attendance as the games culminate Tuesday evening with a 270-foot obstacle course run.
Tickets for the final day of competition (Tuesday, Aug. 11) can be obtained by CLICKING HERE. Gates open at 3 p.m., doors close at 6 p.m., and the event begins at 7 p.m. Guests are encouraged to wear a jersey from their home state.
The competition is set to be live-streamed on the ESPN app. A one-hour special on the Patriot Games is also set to air on ABC on Thursday, Aug. 13, at 9 p.m.
Clay LePard is the Ashtabula, Geauga and Portage counties reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on X @ClayLePard, on Facebook ClayLePardTV or email him at Clay.LePard@wews.com.
