The most honored athlete in Logan County history and the most decorated athlete in Kentucky Special Olympics history, will appear on ABC’s Good Morning America tomorrow (Monday) morning. The program airs on Nashville’s Channel 2 as well as Bowling Green television from 7-9 a.m., CDT.
Lee Dockins, a graduate of Logan County High School, is in Orlando where she will represent Kentucky this week in gymnastics in the U.S. Special Olympics Games for the fourth time.
Ideally, she will add more gold medals to her treasure chest and be selected to represent the USA for a fourth World Games. This will be held in 2023 in Germany.
Previously she has competed in World Games in Shanghai, China, Athens, Greene, and Ahu Dubai.
She has been won gold medals as the world’s best all-around Special Olympic artistic gymnast. Now she is competing in rhythmic gymnastics.
Her highest honor—even greater than seeing signs welcoming visitors to Logan County, Home of Lee Dockins—has been chosen as one of five representatives of U.S. Special Olympics to be featured in an exhibit at the prestigious Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C. Another one of the five is Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who created Special Olympics in her backyard 60 years ago. In 1962, Shriver’s brothers included President John F. Kennedy and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.
She began gymnastics at age 5 in 1992, practicing at least three times a week at Donnie and Polly Porter’s Logan County Gymnastics in Russellville where she has trained ever since. The Porters still lead her coaching and have used Lee as a coach, too. According to the National Museum of American History, she has competed in more than 150 Special Olympics competitions and has won countless medals. She is now a coach, teaching athletes of all abilities flexibility and training them on the different apparatus used in gymnastic competitions.
In addition to the Porters, Lee has been faithfully supported by her parents, Harris and Sharon Dockins; her brothers, Frank Harris and John Logan Dockins and their wives; and her uncle and aunt, Dave and Paige Dockins.
Events from the Games will be offered on ESPN+, with a highlight show on ESPN2 each day of the games. Other ESPN/ABC broadcasts will air:
Tuesday June 7 6p-7p (CDT) on ESPN2 & ESPN app
Wednesday June 8 6:30p-7:30p (CDT) on ESPN2 & ESPN app
Sunday June 12 1p-2p (CDT) on ABC & ESPN