Stafford club triumphs at awards

In the 30^th anniversary year of Special Olympics Great Britain and the 5^th anniversary year of Special Olympics Stafford we are delighted to announce being awarded Sports Club of the Year at yesterdays NPower West Midlands Disability Sports Awards 2008.

This prestigious event was held at Aston Villa Football club and was attended by sporting celebrities such as Sir Trevor Brooking and Doug Ellis.

The club was nominated by Anne George, a Development Officer from Staffordshire, who joined the coaches as part of the awards evening.

She nominated the organisation because she recognised the work of this much needed outlet for young people with learning disabilities outside of school hours.

She acknowledged the improvement of the core skills of agility, balance and co-ordination and the sense of fun and enjoyment within the group which contributed to the overall physical wellbeing of the athletes involved.

Special Olympics Stafford

Special Olympics Stafford was founded in 2003 by local man Clive Gibson who identified a shortfall in sports provision for young people with learning difficulties.

As part of the larger organisation the Stafford branch sought funding from a variety of organisations which included the National Lottery local businesses alongside a variety of fundraising events.

The Stafford Branch started with 8 young people and now has a role of over 20 young people.

Athletes compete in numerous events which include cross country, football and hockey tournaments and Special Olympics athletics meetings.

Members of the club include English Federation for Disability Sport (EDFS)
National under 15’s 100 metre junior sprint champion.

After receiving £500 from the ACCESS across Staffordshire fund, Special Olympics Stafford hosted the first West Midlands Sportshall athletics event in December 2007 at Cannock Chase Leisure Centre, involving over 100 athletes.

Pictured above: Stafford Special Olympics

Background

Special Olympics Great Britain (SOGB) was established in 1978 as part of the global Special Olympics movement. An accreditation licence is granted annually by Special Olympics International to Special Olympics GB to run the Special Olympics programme in this country.

SOGB is a UK registered charity under Charity No 800329 and is a company limited by guarantee.

Since our formation, we have grown steadily to reach our present position where we have more than 135 groups in England, Scotland and Wales offering 24 sports in our training and competition programme.

Sports include: Athletics, Alpine Skiing, Aquatics, Basketball, Boccia, Bowls, Badminton, Cricket, Cycling, Equestrian, Football, Gymnastics (Artistic and Rhythmic), Golf, Judo, Kayaking,

Training for athletes of Special Olympics Stafford takes place on Saturday morning from 9.30am at Rowley Park Stadium (summer) and Blessed William High School (winter) where a variety of athletics and multi ball sports are undertaken by the young people and are coached by volunteer coaches led by Clive Gibson and Dave Sandford. Clive can be contacted on 01785 604371 for further details.

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