Mark your calendars for Friday May 15, 2017.  That is the day of the Tioga County Special Olympics Track and Field event held at Mansfield University.  High School students from surrounding school districts get the opportunity to be “buddies” for the day.  This involves going around to each event with a Special Olympic athlete and providing support and encouragement.  Although this is the biggest event held by Tioga County Special Olympics, it is not the only event.

Many people do not realize that the local Special Olympics provides year round sports opportunities to individuals with mental and physical disabilities from ages 8 to 80.  They offer training and competitions in Golf, Bocce, Bowling, Swimming, Basketball, and Track and Field. They used to offer Floor Hockey, Skiing, and Power lifting. In addition to the local competitions for each sport, athletes are chosen to go on to the Regional and State level to compete. States for Bocce are held in Villanova, PA and states in Golf, Swimming, Bowling and Basketball are at Penn State University. This gives the athletes an opportunity to compete with individuals from all over the state and earn medals at this level in addition to the ones they earn locally. It really gives them a sense of accomplishment.

Special Olympics also offers the opportunity for athletes to go to World Games which is very similar to the Olympics.  They are currently being held in Austria.  Athletes from Tioga County haven’t participated in the World Games in about 15 years. A Wellsboro woman participated in Skiing in Japan.  My aunt, an athlete with Down Syndrome, went in Power lifting in 1999 when the US hosted the games in Raleigh, North Carolina.  It is an experience she will never forget. She was excited that she got to share the stage with Arnold Schwarzenegger, a popular movie actor at the time.

As you can see, Special Olympics athletes and volunteers are busy year round.  They are always looking for volunteers to help. If you have never volunteered at one of these events, consider doing so. It is a memorable experience.