Kyle Lillie placed first in three and second in two of the seven men’s heavy athletic events during the 2026 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, thereby claiming the top spot overall for the competition. This is Lillie’s first time competing at the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games.
The 34-year-old from Colorado Springs, Colo., is an assistant track and field coach at the U.S. Air Force Academy. He has been competing in heavy athletics for 10 years — a natural progression from his days throwing for his high school and college track and field teams. In 2025, he was the U.S. National Highland Games Champion.
Despite intermittent rain throughout the day, which was heavy at times, Lillie won the stone throw, the caber toss and the 56-pound weight toss for height. He placed second in the 56-pound weight throw for distance and hammer throw.
“Pulling three 12 o’clocks on the caber was really fun, especially in the pouring rain,” he said. In the caber toss competition, an imaginary clock face is used for judging. A perfect toss flips completely over, with the far end of the log pointing straight ahead to 12 o’clock on the field.
The weather contributed to the day’s cultural atmosphere, as it was remarkably similar to the climate of the Scottish Highlands. As many athletes have noted, Grandfather Mountain provides a special backdrop for these events.
“It’s got a lot of history to it; it’s a very old Games,” Lillie said. “It’s almost a bucket list Games for a lot of people; getting the opportunity to come out here after being in the game for 10 years has been cool.”
This year’s Grandfather Mountain Highland Games saw eight men competing in front of a large crowd this past Saturday.
Eric Frasure, the 2025 overall men’s heavy athletics winner, was this year’s runner-up, winning the hammer throw and the 20-pound sheaf toss and coming in second for the 28-pound weight throw for distance and the 56-pound weight toss for height.
The men’s elite competition is by invitation only and featured eight competitors vying to best each other in seven different categories: the sheaf toss (during which competitors use a pitchfork to hurl a burlap bag stuffed with straw over a horizontal bar), 56-pound weight toss for height, stone throw, 56-pound weight throw for distance, 28-pound weight throw for distance, hammer (spherical weight fastened to a wooden handle) throw and caber toss.
The 2026 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games took place July 9-12 at Grandfather Mountain’s MacRae Meadows in Linville, N.C. To learn more about the Highland Games, visit www.gmhg.org.