More than 11,000 athletes from across the state are expected to compete in the 2007 Summer Games of the Special Olympics Maryland from June 8-10 on Towson's campus.
The Special Olympics offers children and adults with intellectual disabilities year-round training and competition in 30 Olympic-type summer and winter sports.
Currently, there are more than 200 Special Olympics programs across the country, including several in Maryland.
Sporting events for this summer's Special Olympics Maryland games include aquatics, athletics, bocce, softball (team and individual skills) and equestrian, according to the Special Olympics Web site.
Men's basketball head coach Pat Kennedy said he wants the TU community to show their support for the event by coming out for the game's opening ceremony and the weekend's sporting events.
Kennedy and his wife Jeannie have been involved in the Special Olympics for 25 years. He said that the event is a great way for the community to show support for a "great cause."
TU hosted the Special Olympics for several years, and then the games were moved to the University of Maryland, College Park. When the event returned to Towson two years ago, not many people knew about the event, Kennedy said.
"[The games] didn't get a lot of publicity when they came back to Towson. This year, my wife has a special committee and they're out putting posters all over Towson trying to get people to get out for the opening ceremony," he said.
The opening ceremony is scheduled for Friday, June 8, at 7:30-9 p.m., in the Towson Center.
"The opening ceremony for the Special Olympics is just like the opening ceremony for the Olympics," Kennedy said. "There's a torch lighting ceremony every year. All of the athletes will march in and an announcer will announce each of their names, and the county they represent. Governor [Martin] O'Malley will be there as well. We really want people to come out because the more people at the opening ceremony, the more festive it will be."
Tom Waite, senior vice president for sports management with Maryland Special Olympics, said that when the athletes are not competing, they will have the opportunity to meet other athletes and participate in several activities, including a block party and a dance.
"We're going to have an Olympic Park area with carnival games and music throughout the weekend. We'll also have some booths where law enforcement officers will do finger printing and photograph some of the younger athletes for their parents," he said, "There will be a magic show Saturday afternoon, followed by a victory dance, which all of the athletes really seem to like."
Dentists, optometrists and doctors will give free dental, eye and physical screenings for all of the athletes.
"We're doing all of this for free because often times the athletes do not have access to this health screening. If there was a need, the doctors would refer them to a home physician," he said.
Volunteers are a vital part of the weekend's events. Kennedy said that he hopes to have more Towson students and members of the community volunteer.
"Anyone can go online to the Special Olympics Web site to sign up to volunteer. Volunteers take the athletes around for their specific event," he said. "Being a volunteer is a wonderful experience, especially because you get to spend time with some amazing people and meet the athlete's families."
Randallstown resident Robin Lawson attended the Special Olympics for the past three years to cheer on her son, Devery.
Last year, Devery won three medals, including a gold medal for the 100-yard dash.
Lawson said the event benefits the athletes socially, as well as physically.
"I think that the games helped increase his social skills, and his interaction with his peers," she said. "[The Special Olympics] gave him the chance to be actively involved in the same activities that quote unquote 'normal' children participate in, and it gave him a place to showcase his talents and abilities."
For more information about Special Olympic Maryland, or the 2007 Summer Games, call 410-789-6677 or visit http://www.somd.org/.
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