Illinois Special Olympics State Basketball Championship

The 2009 Illinois State Special Olympics just held the state Championships for basketball in Normal, Illinois, at Illinois State University. According to Special Olympics of Illinois more than 1500 athletes from the state participated in the Championship tournament held March 13-15^th 2009. The event recognizes a most valuable Player for each game in what is known as the Ron Knisley Spirit of the game Award in honor of Ron Knisley.

This is an event that allows children ages 8 up to adults to participate in the sport of basketball and be recognized for the talents they develop in the sport in a publicized and significant way. 6 randomly selected High school level teams played their final game at the Illinois State High School March madness tournament at the Peoria Civic Center. Special Olympics started in Illinois nearly 40 years ago. On July 20, 1968, the first Special Olympics competition was held at Soldier Field, Chicago. Today their are Special Olympics programs in 150 different countries. Some 3 million athletes participate world wide. The Special Olympics athletes oath is: "Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt."

The Canton, IL Jr. Basketball team won the division 4 Championship and was awarded Gold metals. Lauren Smith and Felisha Swank won the Spirit of the game awards for Canton. The Canton, IL game was the last to be played in the tournament and the coach Greg Stephenson was personally thanked and acknowledged by an official of Illinois Special Olympics for putting in players who are not the most developed in their basketball skills. The move was at first not welcomed by some parents as the game was for the gold medal and Canton almost lost the game which was very close.

That is what Special Olympics are all about. It's about playing the sport of basketball, not winning or losing. The team was greeted by the Canton Fire dept. when they returned to Canton and given an escort through the town. As a parent of the Canton Special Olympics team, my daughter is Lauren Smith. I must say I am proud of her and the entire team for not only the talent they have, but the sportsmanship they have, which is unrivaled in the non Special Olympics world of sports. These players actually recognize when an opponent is not capable of scoring or dribbling and will step back a bit to allow the individual to get the basket or make the pass. This is something not seen in normal sports, as the environment is highly competitive. Also the Fulton County Rehabilitation basketball team qualified and won 3^rd place in the Special Olympics 4^th division.

Sources:

Special Olympics of Illinois website: http://www.soill.org/content.php?sec=Sports&cat=State%20Sports%20Events&contentID=101