The Special Olympics Kentucky Golf Season runs June - September. There are approximately 100 golfers currently involved with the program. The SOKY Golf Program offers 3 levels of play; Individual Skills, Unified Play (Special Olympics athlete paired with a golfer without a mental disability) and Individual Play. The State Tournament is generally held in September and golfers must qualify for the State Tournament by playing in a sanctioned Regional Level Tournament
The Special Olympics Kentucky Softball season runs June through September. There are approximately 45-50 Special Olympics softball teams in the state. Teams practice on a weekly basis and in some areas of the state, league play is available. In other areas, teams schedule games with one another. In August, teams participate in their respective Regional Tournament in order to qualify for the State Tournament.
The State Softball Tournament begins on a Friday night with first round games. On Saturday, games begin early in the morning and go until around 5:00 pm. At this time, players and coaches head back to the hotels to get ready for the banquet and Victory Dance. This is a tradition in Special Olympics as it is important for everyone to have the opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of the day. Final round games are played Sunday morning and by noon, most division winners have been determined.
Event Details
When: Early October (October 8, 2006)
Where: Kentucky Horse Park; Lexington, KY
Volunteer Opportunities: judges, awards presenters
Registration: Three weeks prior to event date
Event Details
When: Early December (December 1-3, 2006)
Where: Collins Bowling Centers; Lexington , KY
Volunteer Opportunities: lane workers (more than 200 needed), Unified partners, official scorers, awards presenters.
Registration: Athletes register in July or August.
The Special Olympics Kentucky Bowling season runs August through December. In August, nearly 1,000 Special Olympics Bowlers begin their bowling season as they bowl weekly in order to improve their bowling skills and to obtain an accurate average. Any athlete who wishes to qualify for the State Bowling Tournament must participate in a sanctioned Area level Tournament. In order to qualify for an Area Tournament, he/she must submit a current average that includes at least 12 games.
Qualifying Area Level Tournaments are held throughout the state in late October and early November. The State Bowling Tournament is scheduled the first weekend in December and is held in Lexington at the Collins Bowling Centers.
The SOKY Bowling Program offers several formats of competition: singles, doubles and unified (Special Olympics athlete paired with a partner without a mental disability).
Event DetailsWhen: January 27-29, 2008
Where: Perfect North Slopes; Lawrenceburg, IN
Volunteer Opportunities: competition workers, ski partners, awards stations
Registration: Athletes register three weeks prior to the event date
Competition is offered in Alpine Skiing and Snowshoeing events. In Alpine Skiing, 4 levels are offered; Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced and Advanced-Plus.
The Games begin on Sunday afternoon as delegations arrive for practice and that evening, participate in the Opening Ceremonies. On Monday, athletes are matched with volunteer ski partners for additional practice and then participate in Time Trials. Results from the Time Trials are used to make final competitive heats. On Tuesday, athletes are again paired with a volunteer ski partner as they practice in the morning to prepare for the final competition held in the afternoon. In the Alpine Skiing Competition, athletes compete in both downhill and slalom events. In Snowshoeing, athletes compete in the 25 meter, 50 meter and 100 meter races.
- For athletes who cannot quite master the skills for alpine downhill and slalom events, Developmental Races are offered; 10 meter and 20 meter glide.
Thank you to all the ski clubs in the tri-state area who support this event especially the Cincinnati Ski Club.
When: Mid-February 2008
Where: Alpine Ice Arena; Louisville, KY
Volunteer Opportunities: skating instructors, awards stations
Registration: Athletes register in November and participate in weekly skating sessions at Alpine Ice Arena from November through the State Competition in February
The annual Figure Skating competition is held in February at the Alpine Ice House in Louisville. If you are interested in helping with this event or if you would like to know more about the Special Olympics figure Skating Program, click on the button below and complete the form.
Event Details
When: Early March 2008
Where: Lexington, KY
Volunteer Opportunities: coaches, judges, tabulators, announcers
Registration: Athletes register in November and are placed with teams
The SOKY State Cheerleading competition branched out on its own for the first time in 2005 after 20 years of being held in conjunction with the State Basketball tournament. The competition takes place on a Saturday with more than 20 squads competing for division honors. For competitive purposes, there are 5 divisions; beginner, intermediate, advanced, elite and Unified.
Event Details
When: Early March 2008
Where: Louisville, KY
Volunteer Opportunities: coaches, officials, scorekeepers, scorebook keepers, awards presenters, skills station workers, group escorts (individual skills competition), score tabulators (individual skills competition), dance decorations.
Registration: Athletes register in November and are placed with teams.
The SOKY Basketball Season runs November - March. There are approximately 75-80 Special Olympics basketball teams in the state. Teams practice on a weekly basis and in some areas of the state, league play is available. In other areas, teams schedule games with each other. In late February, teams participate in their respective Regional Tournament to see who qualifies for the State Tournament.
The State Basketball Tournament is held generally the 2nd or 3rd weekend in March in Louisville. Through Regional play, about 36 teams will qualify for the State Tournament. For the teams who do not qualify, team members are still invited to come to Louisville to compete in the Individual Skills Competition.
Teams arrive in Louisville on Friday afternoon as Tournament games and Skills competition begins early Saturday morning. Games and Skills are played well into Saturday afternoon and by 5:00 pm, all play ceases! It's time to get ready for the banquet and dance. A Victory Dance has become a tradition for Special Olympics and is truly a highlight for the athletes.
The teams who have won on Saturday will advance to the final round of play on Sunday morning. By early Sunday afternoon, division titles have been decided! Individual Skills competition is completed by Saturday afternoon.
Event Details
When: June 2008
What: Track and Field, Swimming, Gymnastics, Powerlifting and Soccer Championships
Where: Eastern Kentucky University; Richmond, KY
Volunteer Opportunities: timers, event stagers, awards stations, soccer officials.
Registration: Varies by sport. Swimming has the earliest registration date. Call 800-633-7403 for details.
The Special Olympics Kentucky Summer Games is the largest competitive event of the year as competition is conducted in 5 sports: Aquatics, Gymnastics, Powerlifting, Soccer and Track & Field. The Games are traditionally held the first weekend in June and take place on a college campus. On average, 1,000 athletes participate in these Games and each has qualified through participation at a Regional or Area level event. In addition to the athletes, approximately 600 coaches and five hundred family members attend the Games.
The Games officially begin on Friday night with the Opening ceremonies, which include a Parade of Athletes, Entertainment, Reciting of the Special Olympics Oath and the culmination of the statewide Law Enforcement Torch Run.
Competition begins early on Saturday morning and goes all day until the last heat on the track is run, the final bar lifted and the final goal is scored! When athletes are finished competing or waiting to compete, they have the opportunity to visit Olympic Town. Olympic Town is a designated area where athletes, coaches, family members, event volunteers can go to relax and enjoy musical entertainment and interactive games. Olympic Town also includes sports clinics, bingo, food, Special Smiles and Opening Eyes Healthy Athlete Programs.
By 5:00 pm competition and Olympic Town activities wrap up and the athletes are ready to celebrate the accomplishments of the day! Saturday night plays host to the Closing Ceremonies followed by the traditional Victory Dance.
To make the Summer Games happen it takes the coordinated efforts of over 500 volunteers. If you would like to receive volunteer information for this event, please click on the button below and complete the form.
