'They can do it, too': Athletes with Down syndrome, autism compete in Austin triathlon

[Mickey the Mouth]

Matt Owens and Stewart Mickler swim in Lake Travis as they train for the SuperTri triathlon. They were practicing their communication skills in the water. Mickler will swim alongside Owens as part of a unified team of racers. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)


Kayleigh Williamson and Carter Cawley are running up and down hills by West Fifth Street as part of the Austin Triathlon Club's training. "If I didn't run, I would be bored," Cawley said.

Williamson runs because of the inspiration of her "heavenly" grandmother. "She tells me to go farther," Williamson said.

Carl Owens helps his son, Matt Owens, get on his swim cap before training with Stewart Mickler, left, at Lake Travis. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)


The next day, Matt Owens strikes a pose to show off his arm muscles, or "his guns," as he and his father call them. Owens starts walking toward Lake Travis where he and Stewart Mickler will swim around a marina, getting used to communicating with each other.

On Monday, Williamson, Cawley and Owens will cross the finish line at the Ascension Seton SuperTri as part of two unified triathlon teams. Williamson and Owens will be on a team with Mickler, who will guide them through their parts of the race by running a 5K with Williamson and swimming 750 meters with Owens. Mickler will do the middle part of the race, the cycling, alone. All three will cross the finish line together. Williamson, 36, and Owens, 27, both have Down syndrome.

Cawley, 20, will run a 5K with Jeff Campbell, who will swim and cycle before Cawley joins him for the run. Cawley has autism.

Part of the mission of the Austin Triathlon Club is "to help spread the joy of triathlon to other people," Mickler said.

Carter Cawley runs alongside Jeff Campbell. Campbell will run with Cawley during the triathlon. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)

Competing in Special Olympics and beyond​

Williamson, Cawley and Owens compete in the Special Olympics, but they also compete in non-Special Olympics events.

On Sunday, Williamson is running her 30th half-marathon in Calgary before flying home to run the triathlon the next morning. She also regularly runs the Austin Distance Challenge races, and plans to return in November for her third New York City Marathon. She swims, plays basketball and other sports with Special Olympics or supportive programs.

"I love running," Williamson said. "It keeps me healthy."

Stewart Mickler and Kayleigh Williamson stretch before running as they train for the SuperTri triathlon on Monday. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)


Owens swam on his high school swim team in Wimberley, and now swims four times a week, including with a swim team of people his dad's age. His father was his high school swim coach and competed in triathlons years ago. His brother and sister were also swimmers. Owens' best stroke is the breaststroke, which has helped him outswim his sister and some of his teammates.

Mickler was worried that if Owens gets going, he might leave him in the dust, which is why they were practicing their communication in the water last week. "I'm just going to swim beside him," Mickler said. "He's the racer."

Matt Owens swims as he trains for a triathlon at Lake Travis. This will be his second open-water race. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)


Cawley regularly runs around his neighborhood with his phone on blast by his ear as if it's a boombox. "It's a sense of freedom for him," said his mother, Tish Cawley. "It also builds confidence."

Cawley also plays soccer on a Special Olympics team. This will be his first triathlon. "This is going to be cool to run in front of all my fans," he said.

Carter Cawley high-fives a fellow Austin Triathlon Club athlete during an club run. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)

Unified teams aim to build confidence, inclusion​

When athletes compete in the Special Olympics, it's often just fellow athletes and their parents watching. When they can compete alongside people who are neurotypical, it gives them confidence. They are doing what their friends and family members are also doing.

"He's just as capable as anybody else," Tish Cawley said.

From left, Carter Cawley runs with Jeff Campbell and his mom, Tish Cawley, as they train for the triathlon. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)


Mickler is hoping family members of people with disabilities will see these teams and want to join next year.

"Athletes with special needs didn't always feel comfortable" participating in sports with neurotypical people, Mickler said.

"They are helping people to see they can do it, too," Tish Cawley said of her son, Owens and Williamson.

Campbell loves running with Cawley. They talk about everything from wrestling, which is a Cawley favorite, to dogs to Texas Longhorns teams. "Mostly, it's very ordinary," Campbell said of his run with Cawley. "It's a wonderful way to go out for a run."

Stewart Mickler encourages Kayleigh Williamson as they train a week before the SuperTri. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)


Mickler helped connect Williamson and Cawley to be on a team together. Finding a neurodivergent person to cycle is difficult because of differences in balance. The cycling portion also is the most intimidating, both Mickler and Campbell said, because of the number of people biking into one another.

"We are so lucky to have people who want to do this with them," Tish Cawley said. Her son, she said, "has to put in twice to three times the work ... "but it's so worth it."

Stewart Mickler hugs Matt Owens after their swim at Lake Travis on Tuesday. (Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman)

Ascension Seton SuperTri​

7 a.m. Monday, starting on Austin's Lady Bird Lake at Vic Mathias Shores.

For more information, visit supertri.com/austin

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