The Barnyard Olympics is certainly a highlight of the Logan County Fair for youngsters looking to have a good time.
No results are taken down; the event is held solely to have fun.
Kids were divided into four groups based on age. The two younger groups battled against each other, and the two older groups did the same.
Fair King Kwinton Mansfield emceed the event. He encouraged the crowd to get involved by claiming the winner of each event would be decided based on how loudly the crowd cheered. He also got the contestants pumped up by playing some loud music.
The referees dressed up in fast food shirts and a chicken suit (pictured right), adding humor to the event.
Listen to Kendall Pemberton explain what the Barnyard Olympics is.
To start off the Olympics, competitors were asked to run down the length of the barn, retrieve a stack of hay bales, run back (pictured left), and then build a sculpture (pictured right) out of the bales. The four groups made a bunker, a barn, a pyramid, and a cave out of the bales.
The next task was to roll a tire down and back across the length of the arena (pictured left). The students quickly thought to just pick up the tire and run, which proved to be beneficial. The younger groups had car tires, while the older groups wrestled with tires made for tractors.
For the next event, each group had to select four members that were ready and willing to chug some chocolate milk. The members of the older groups were required to chug three glasses a piece, while the younger groups were only asked to drink one.
Next came tug-of-war (pictured left), a grade school favorite for many of the kids. Fair Royalty and Junior Fair Board members helped out the kids as they tugged with all their might.
Participants were tiring, but the show had to go on! The activity to come was the 
traditional spoon and egg carry (pictured right), with a twist. The competitors had to step over different obstacles made out of hay bales. The rules were described loosely, so students quickly started to just run through the obstacle course holding the spoon and egg in separate hands, rather than balancing the egg on the spoon. The course proved too challenging for some kids, and their eggs went crashing to the ground.
The final event was wheelbarrow races (pictured left). Kids paired up, and one partner held the other's feet while he or she walked on his or her hands. This was probably the most difficult activity, because students had to navigate a series of stacked hay bales. Eventually the kids gave up and just started running. The few groups who continued to attempt the activity received large amounts of cheering from the crowd.
Participants and the crowd are geared to watch the real Olympics in a few weeks!
