Cape will host state Special Olympics in October

Lucas Blattel knows firsthand what a little healthy competition can do for a man's outlook.

Once a shy teenager, Blattel, 30, of Delta says he became more outgoing after a teacher talked him into joining a Special Olympics softball team in 2002.

"This has really helped me to come out of my shell and do a lot more things since I started doing Special Olympics," he said.

Three years ago, Blattel went to Greece to play tennis at the international level. He also has competed in softball, tennis, bowling, power lifting, track and field, basketball and soccer over the years.

Blattel is one of 1,100 athletes from Missouri who will participate in the Special Olympics State Fall Games from Oct. 11 to 13 in Cape Girardeau.

"We've booked every hotel room in this community," said Penny Williams, recreation division manager for the city of Cape Girardeau.

In addition to the obvious economic effect, the games provide intangible benefits to the host community, she said.

While the athletes -- who must be at least 8 years old and have some type of mental disability -- face challenges in their daily lives, the games give them an opportunity to focus on competing and having fun for a few days, Williams said.

"There's not a better experience or a better feeling that you can have than to make a difference in the life of another person," she said. " ... If you know what it's like to put a uniform on and get on a bus and travel with your friends and get to compete in a statewide competition -- if you've ever had that feeling, you know everybody deserves to have the opportunity to have that feeling."

Although Blattel enjoyed his trip to Greece, he is looking forward to playing softball and tennis in front of a home crowd.

"Getting to meet all the people around the state and being able to have the state here at home in our backyard -- that's the fun part about it," he said.

Blattel's softball coach, Stan Smith, enjoys watching his team grow and develop as ballplayers.

"They have a lot of fun, and I have fun when they're having fun," he said.

Coaching a Special Olympics team isn't dramatically different from coaching any other team, Smith said.

Like any coach, he has to find ways to communicate effectively with his players.

"Their concept and understanding of things that aren't concrete -- if you can demonstrate a skill and have them mimic that, that's one thing, but trying to teach them something that's more subjective, like strategies of the game ... is sometimes hard," said Smith, who got involved with Special Olympics as a volunteer coach in 1988.

Creativity, patience and frequent drills help players understand the subtleties of the game, he said.

"You try to find concrete ways to express those abstract things," Smith said.

Blattel's softball team, the Southeast Storm, is one of four local teams that will compete at the Fall Games, Williams said.

Four tennis players and 20 bocce players from Southeast Missouri also will play, she said.

"Bocce has become really popular, so we're building more bocce courts. This year, we're going to have a total of 22 bocce courts," Williams said.

In addition to bocce, softball and tennis, the games include golf and flag football.

This is Cape Girardeau's fourth and final year as host of the Fall Games.

Putting on a five-sport, statewide competition for 1,100 people is a big undertaking, requiring hundreds of volunteers and costing about $80,000 in donations from corporate sponsors and individual contributors, Williams said.

"You can imagine the number of people that it takes," she said. "It's quite an operation, just getting people to the right places at the right times."

With the opening ceremonies less than two weeks away, organizers still need volunteers to help with everything from preparing food to presenting medals, Williams said. Anyone interested in helping can visit somo.org/fallgames to find out about volunteer positions, schedules and locations.

Williams also would like to see people support the athletes by cheering for them at the opening ceremonies, which begin at 7 p.m. Oct. 11 at the Show-Me Center.

"Cape Girardeau really rolls out the red carpet for them," she said. "No matter if they've got a gold, silver or bronze medal, they definitely leave feeling like they're winners."

epriddy@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Show-Me Center, Cape Girardeau, MO

How to help

Three easy ways to support Special Olympics in Southeast Missouri:

Volunteer: Visit somo.org/fallgames for a list of volunteer positions, schedules and locations.

Donate: Call Penny Williams at 339-6733 or email williams@somo.org to make a financial donation.

Cheer: Attend the opening ceremonies at 7 p.m. Oct. 11 at the Show-Me Center and cheer for the athletes as they are introduced.e