As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Special Olympics this year, we are taking a look back at some of the moments that have defined the Special Olympics movement here in B.C. and throughout the world.
With the 2018 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games just around the corner and the Team BC Training Squad in their final preparations for competition, we’re exploring the early days of Team BC and some of the first times British Columbia had a presence at national competitions.
In 1981, despite Special Olympics BC being only a year old, Team BC was already making an impact on the national stage. With a team of 37 athletes, nine coaches, and one Chef de Mission, Team BC travelled to the Special Olympics Canada Summer Games in Ottawa. This was the first time British Columbia had competed nationally, and they brought home an incredible 60 medals.
By 1986 the Special Olympics movement was growing quickly throughout the province. There were 996 athletes with intellectual disabilities participating in 29 communities across B.C., changing people’s hearts and minds with every practice and competition.
Based on their performances at the 1986 Special Olympics BC Summer Games in Kamloops, which saw 400 athletes compete, 52 SOBC athletes advanced to the 1986 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games in Calgary.
“It was exciting!” said 1986 Team BC Chef de Mission Wayne Hadley. “For all our athletes it was the pinnacle of their training. They had good memories of it for sure.”
More than 1,000 athletes and coaches were welcomed into McMahon Stadium by cheering crowds at the 1986 National Games Opening Ceremonies in Spruce Grove, just outside of Calgary. The energetic event was also attended by then-Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and members of the NHL community.
Today, Team BC has grown into a formidable force of 174 athletes from across the province who are eagerly awaiting their opportunity to shine at the 2018 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games, kicking off in Antigonish, Nova Scotia next week.
Now, just like in the past, being a part of Team BC provides athletes with opportunities to further develop their skills, make new friends, and show what they can do on the national stage.
SOBC – Campbell River’s Ashley Adie has been working hard to achieve her goal of beating her personal bests in athletics at National Games. Along with training on the track, Adie has been doing speed drills, strength training, running on a treadmill, and swimming.
Adie says she is looking forward to the experience of representing her province next week.
“It's really humbling because I've been trying to reach this level of competition for years and now it's happening for real.”
SOBC – Kamloops golfer David Simon is also diligently preparing for his first national competition by getting out on the golf course twice a week.
Simon says he is excited to travel to a place he’s never been before and see a new part of the country, and he is “looking forward to getting out on the course and hopefully winning big!”
In Fort St. John, rhythmic gymnastics coach Rachel Lam says Team BC Training Squad member Mykaela Stewart is hard at work on her routines and remarked on the incredible change she has seen in Stewart since she started with Special Olympics in 2013.
“Any time we were going to try a new skill, the first words out of her mouth were ‘I can't.’ I would hand her a notice for her parents and she would tell me that she couldn't be trusted because she would lose it. When I talked to her about it, she said that most of the time nobody in her life ever expected anything from her.”
Since those first few years, Lam says “the transformation that she has made is unbelievable to me.” Stewart now comes to every practice determined to work hard.
“I never hear the words ‘I can’t’ come out of her mouth.”
Stewart says she is looking forward to National Games next week, and she hopes to qualify for the 2019 Special Olympics World Games in Abu Dhabi “and make new friends from all over Canada.”
Powerlifter Sarah Brown is also excited to meet athletes from across the country in Nova Scotia, and has been working hard to prepare for her competitions by doing weight training and powerlifting. Her goal is to beat her personal best and have fun.
Team BC powerlifting Head Coach Emma Woo says at their latest competition, the coaches saw “all of the athletes on track for each of their personal goals, excited to give everyone updates – and having a really fun time.”
We can’t wait to cheer on Team BC! Competitions kick off in Nova Scotia on Wednesday, August 1 and run through to Saturday, August 4. Don’t forget to follow all the action on our social media accounts using the hashtag #SOTeamBC2018!