Nearly 2,400 athletes are set to perform at the BC Summer Games in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island next month.

Volunteers have been preparing to host the huge event for the past two years, with more than 2,500 of them set to welcome the host of young athletic talent on July 19-22.

Eighteen different sports will be on display, from baseball and golf to wrestling and sailing.

Athletes with disabilities will compete in track and field canoeing/kayaking, horseback riding and swimming, while Indigenous athletes will take on new opportunities in canoeing/kayaking, basketball, and box lacrosse.

The BC Games, which celebrated its 40th anniversary this year, has been the starting point for many Olympic and Paralympic athletes.

Thirty-five alumni competed for Canada in the 2016 Summer Games in Rio, including Georgia Simmerling (cycling), Kirsten Sweetland (triathlon), Jamie Broder (beach volleyball), Evan Dunfee (race walk), and Byron Green (wheelchair rugby).

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Check out the full list of participants in your community .

Sponsor Black Press Media will be sending a five-person team to cover all the highlights. Check out your local community news website for full coverage during the Games.

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