Special Olympics Athletes and Coaches Wanted
Clair Duffy (front row, left) was a goalkeeper and utility player for this Delaware County soccer team, one of several Delco squads which won titles in the 2018 Pennsylvania Special Olympics championships. Clair’s favorite sport is actually softball, which she has played avidly since she was a kid (she’s 32 now), said her mother Jane Duffy of Wallingford. Now the summer season is coming to a close, it’s time to get ready for the fall soccer campaign, Jane said. “Clair has a good time, whatever the sport. It’s a great opportunity for her to socialize with other adults.” A product of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District, Clair was a member of the Strath Haven marching band. Parents Jane and John Duffy plan to cheer her 7 x 7 soccer team on through the 2019 season, culminating in the Pennsylvania Special Olympics, to be held at Villanova University.
If you thought it was exciting to see the U.S. women’s soccer team win their fourth World Cup, you’ll really be inspired when you see a Delaware County Special Olympics soccer player leap for joy after scoring his first goal, or a volleyball player beam as she aces a serve, or a flag footballer fist-bump his teammates after a goal. The sportsmanship, friendship and growth are evident every week.
Starting this month, hundreds of athletes with intellectual disabilities — and many abilities — will train in a variety of fall and year-round sports including volleyball, bowling, bocce, soccer, powerlifting, flag football and a Young Athletes program. All sports welcome athletes, coaches and volunteers.
Individuals with intellectual disabilities who are age 8 and older are invited to sign up and participate in any of the training programs. (Those 7 and younger can participate in the Young Athletes program that starts on Sept. 25.) Most trainings start this month and run through early November, taking place on a weekly basis at various locations throughout the county.
Athletes interested in participating can visit the website at sodelco.org to see the full summer/fall schedule. Individuals can register by sending an email with name and contact information to DelcoSpecialO@comcast.net. There is a medical form that needs to be completed and sent to the local SO office at Box 279, Morton, PA 19070.
Family members and community individuals interested in volunteering or coaching can learn about the qualification process through the state SO website at specialolympicspa.org.
The mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.
The Special Olympics movement unlocks the joy of sport to inspire people to open their minds to human giftedness, to accept, include and value people with intellectual disabilities in all aspects of life, and thereby unite people in a shared belief of a more just and welcoming world.
