How many persons know that the National Special Olympics Games were recently held?How many persons know that it was held at the Hasely Crawford Stadium/Jean Pierre Complex and other venues over a weekend?The answers, if people are honest, would be "not many."And herein is the major problem with this society. We do not care about anything once we are not affected.
The facts are that over 500 differently-abled persons participated in the 2013 Special Olympics over two extremely sunny and heated days in April (20, 21) and enjoyed themselves to the fullest.There were 17 organisations and groups represented and more importantly, there was a wealth of volunteers as usual. Full credit has to be given to the major sponsor Digicel which, through its involvement, not only demonstrated a willingness to work with the Special Olympics team, but also a happiness and excitement to be part of this yearly, wonderful experience. Chief executive officer John Delves was very instrumental in all of this.
Chairperson of Special Olympics Norma James stated that the theme for this year's event was "Say NO to the R word."Interestingly, the majority of the sparse crowd was family members or friends. This, sadly, is another indictment on all of us, including the media, who do not find it profitable or audience-commanding enough to cover these games.
Let me admit that I too must take some blame since there were avenues that I should have utilised to help but didn't. I hope in 2014 to correct this.When one observes the enthusiasm of these Special Olympians, and feel the nervous tension that exists before every event, one can easily understand why it must be a pleasure to be a volunteer for something worthwhile and quality.
These youngsters are not competing for money, they are not competing for large endorsement contracts, and they are not competing for gold bars: no, they are competing because they have the human spirit and will to do so and in most cases against the odds.Defiance is not always merely about confrontation, but rather in some cases, it is about being able to rise above what is considered acceptable, defying the odds and proving to yourself, first and foremost, that you can achieve something.At Special Olympics, it is not only about winning, it is also about successfully competing and participating–finishing what you have started. This sort of relief will certainly enhance our Special Olympians life cycle and improve their own self-worth and belief and that is what makes sports so special.
There were a number of events staged, including powerlifting, athletics, volleyball, basketball, bocce, football, aquatics and equestrian.Also we take this opportunity to express our condolences on the passing of Ms Audrey Floretta Clarke HBM, who was the acknowledged founder of Special Olympics Trinidad and Tobago. She served as the 1st national director of SOTT. She was awarded the Hummingbird Medal Silver in 2007 for community service. Her funeral is scheduled for Wednesday 15 May, 2013 at the Faith Ministries in San Fernando at 1.00 pm.