One month to go before Special Olympics athletes and supporters flood Hamilton

Special Olympics athletes from the Te Awamutu club and National Summer Games volunteers celebrate the one-month-to-go countdown with Hamilton deputy mayor Angela O'Leary (red dress). Photo / Supplied

Thousands of Special Olympics athletes, coaches, volunteers and supporters from all over the country will be flooding into Hamilton in one month's time for the Freemasons New Zealand Special Olympics National Summer Games.

The four-yearly pinnacle sporting event for athletes with an intellectual disability was postponed for a year because of the pandemic, but nothing will stop the 1400 competitors and coaches from taking over Waikato for their events from December 8 - 12.

The athletes will be competing in 10 sports across eight venues in the Waikato, and Special Olympics New Zealand chief executive Carolyn Young says the Hamilton locals need to make sure they get a good taste of what the National Summer Games are all about.

"These games are not only one of the biggest events on the New Zealand sporting calendar, but it is also a spectacle that is truly unrivalled for its passion, courage, emotion and camaraderie," says Young.

The Special Olympics have been working closely with the Hamilton City Council, and deputy mayor Angela O'Leary says that the city will embrace teams coming from all over the country and give them an experience they will never forget.

"Hamilton/Kirikiriroa is incredibly proud to have the opportunity to host these athletes and their teams for the Special Olympics 2022," said O'Leary.

"We're hard at work to make sure the athletes get the most out of their visit to Hamilton and that their time here is memorable and enjoyable."

Young is quick to point out that the event would not be possible without the amazing support from the local community.

"We need over 600 volunteers to run the sports, the logistics, as well as the Healthy Athletes screening programme, and most of these volunteers are coming from the Hamilton area, so a massive thanks to those who are giving up their time to enable athletes to have a great experience," said Young.

To give volunteers and athletes the opportunity to meet others from different sports that they normally would not cross paths with, the games organisers will set up a Games Village in the headquarters at the Globox Arena in Claudelands.

"Anyone involved in the games can come and hang out, have a drink, meet new people and play some fun games," says Special Olympics volunteer manager Kieran Booth, who has the major task of co-ordinating the rosters for all 600 volunteers.

"The Athletes Village is always the beating heart of any Olympic or Commonwealth Games, so we hope to replicate that in some way to give everyone involved the chance to enjoy the games to the fullest extent."

The first of the 38 clubs from all corners of New Zealand will arrive in Hamilton on December 7, with the opening ceremony to take place at Claudelands on December 8.