Sports Digest

Abi Winnicki collects 4 golds, 8 medals at Indigenous Games

    Abi Winnicki
  

Rhinelander High School senior-to-be Abi Winnicki turned in a strong performance last week at the North American Indigenous Games in Halifax, Nova Scotia. 

The Hodag swimmer medaled in all eight events she swam, winning gold in four of them. She also won three silver medals and a bronze. 

Individually, Winnicki was a champion in the 19U women’s 50-meter freestyle (24.27 seconds), the 200 freestyle (2:07.14), the 100 freestyle (57.52) and the 100 backstroke (1:03.07). Winnicki scored a runner-up finish in the 200 individual medley (2:07.14) and was third in the 100 breaststroke (1:15.17). 

Winnicki swam in two relays as part of the Team Wisconsin contingent, taking second in both. She swam to a runner-up finish in the both the 200 and 400 freestyle relays with Reese VanDen Heuvel, Allison Giroux and Izzi Zablocki.

The Indigenous Games were first held in 1990 as an Olympic-style competition for Native Americans or those of Native American descent. Currently the games offer competition in 15 sports for young athletes from the United States and Canada in the 14U, 16U and 19U age brackets.

Winnicki was eligible to compete in the games as a tribal descendant of the Forest County Potawatomi. 

Read more about Winnicki’s experience in Friday’s River News.