Special Olympics competitors meet for 2010 Spring Games

The 2010 Spring Games for the Missouri Special Olympics began Saturday at Southeast Missouri State University Student Recreation Center. Athletes from more than 14 counties gathered to compete at the Track and Field event, one of many planned Special Olympics events that will be held on the campus

as Southeast hosts the Special Olympics Missouri Outdoor Championships, which will include softball, tennis and golf throughout the summer.

"The Special Olympics is so much more than a sporting event," said Penny Williams of the Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Department. "It is an opportunity for the athletes here to step beyond the constraints of their disabilities and to succeed by virtue of their will and athleticism."

Williams said that although the Special Olympics are for people who suffer from disabilities, the rigors of training are still demanding.

Lucas Blattel of Cape Girardeau, the 2004 athlete of the year for the Missouri Special Olympics Team, said he runs every day and works several times a week with coach Stan Smith, a man who has been coaching Special Olympics athletes for more than 20 years.

"Lucas is an all-around athlete," Smith said. "He's a power-lifter who plays basketball and competes in track. This range of sports requires a lot of conditioning, and I'll be working with Lucas for the better part of the year."

The fundraising goal is $25,000 to $45,000 for the outdoor Championship Games. Less than $5,000 has been raised, but Williams said she expects that to improve.

She said she is grateful for the many area businesses that sponsored the event and also Southeast's Greek students for their time and effort.

"Volunteering to help other people is what being a Greek is about," said Adrienne Hawkins, an event supporter and member of a Greek organization. "So being here to help with this event and cheer on the athletes is the least we could do."

"Our athletes all have the heart of a competitor," Smith said. "Special Olympics gives them the chance they don't always have to compete. It's brought me a lot of joy watching the athletes succeed."

Although Blattel won the gold medal in the shot put event, a test of strength where athletes throw a ball weighing 8.8 pounds, he doesn't consider winning the most important part. What matters is "seeing the smiles on everyone's face when someone wins, getting to meet new people and all the people who came to watch and cheer for us," Blattel said.