SALEM, Va. – 20 Special Olympics Basketball teams hit the hardwood this weekend at Roanoke College to participate in the Owen Grogan Memorial Special Olympics Basketball Tournament.
Unified Sports has people with and without intellectual disabilities join together on the same team.
It was inspired by a simple principle: training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding.
“It very much builds community everybody’s on their court together at the same time really makes the athletes feel included and it’s just an inclusive environment for everybody out there”
Bobby Snell, Unified Coach for Special Olympics
And that’s not the only event supporting these athletes. We’re about a month away from the New River Polar Plunge; the biggest fundraiser for the Special Olympics in Southwest Virginia. That’s March 1 at Bisset Park in Radford.