Games to Kick-off With Opening Ceremonies on Friday, June 10
'Breakfast With Champions' Fund Raiser to Feature USC Quarterback
and 2004 Heisman Trophy Winner Matt Leinart
LOS ANGELES, June 9, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Special Olympics Southern California (SOSC), a non-profit organization which provides athletic training and competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, will hold its annual Summer Games on June 10, 11 and 12 on the campus of California State University, Long Beach.
Special Olympics athletes will light the Olympic flame, signifying the start of the 2005 Special Olympics Southern California Summer Games, culminating a 1,500 mile fund-raising torch run by 4,000 participants passing through 200 Southern California communities. Other highlights of the opening ceremonies will include the parade of athletes, performances by recording artist Brian Anthony, and Los Angeles dance group, Culture Shock.
Among the highlights of the Olympic weekend will be the SOSC's Breakfast With Champions presented by the law firm of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker at the Pointe in the Pyramid at California State University Long Beach. This year's event will feature keynote speaker Matt Leinart, USC quarterback and 2004 Heisman Trophy Winner. The Breakfast With Champions brings together sports and business communities to honor extraordinary individual Special Olympians and pays tribute to the athletes and their efforts, as well as showcases the benefits that Special Olympics programs provide to all participants. Proceeds from this fundraiser will be used to assist SOSC athletes in training for year-round competition.
"Special Olympics Southern California is extremely excited about this year's Summer Games, and we look forward to seeing all the athletes who have trained so diligently over the past year in preparation for this event," explained Bob Gobrecht, president/CEO for Special Olympics Southern California. "We are very proud of every one of our Special Olympics athletes and see every participant as a having achieved incredible success by reaching this level of competition."
More than 1,500 children and adult athletes will participate in two days of sports competition, including aquatics, basketball, golf, tennis, athletics, bocce and gymnastics. In addition to the athletes and their coaches, 3,000 volunteers will support the events. The weekend's activities will also feature games, live entertainment, community exhibits, food and a variety of sports clinics that will be open to the public.
The mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for people eight years of age and older with intellectual disabilities. These activities provide continuing opportunities for participants to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.
"We would like to thank the athletes, coaches and volunteers for their dedication and commitment in making these Summer Games a success," added Gobrecht. "Their effort is what sets Special Olympics apart from any other sporting event. We are also grateful to the VONS Foundation, CBS2/KCAL9, Westfield Shoppingtowns, Adelphia Communications, and all of our generous sponsors for providing the resources that make these games possible."
Special Olympics Southern California 2005 Summer Games are being held for the seventh consecutive year at California State University Long Beach.
Major Supporters
Major sponsors of SOSC 2005 Summer Games include: The VONS Foundation, CBS2 - KCAL9, Westfield Shoppingtowns, Adelphia Communications, Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., Inc., Durham School Services, The Lund Foundation, Target Stores, Mattel The Mitchell E. Gordon Memorial Fund, UCLA Challenge for Charity, USC Challenge for Charity, The Boeing Company, The Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Foundation, American Honda, American Fence Association, Supervisor Don Knabe, Yamaha, and Panasonic, Mercedes-Benz of Southern California, The Walt Disney Company, United Parcel Service, Northrop Grumman Corporation.
About Special Olympics Southern California
The mission of Special Olympics Southern California is to provide sports training and competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics Southern California serves more than 10,000 children and adults with intellectual disabilities in an 11-county region of Southern California. The program offers sports training and competition in 23 individual and team sports on a year-round basis. Athletes range in age from eight to 80. Special Olympics Southern California is one of 52 accredited Special Olympics entities operating in the United States. For more information, please visit www.sosc.org.