The fall training season is about to begin for Special Olympics athletes in Kindersley.

Starting on Tuesday, October 1st, aspiring athletes will be able to train for the various sports that make up Special Olympics Saskatchewan. Athletes will be training for the upcoming Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Thunder Bay, Ontario in 2020.

Special Olympics Canada was first established in 1969, and was dedicated to enriching the lives of Canadians with an intellectual disability through the transformative power and joy of sport. Meanwhile, Special Olympics Saskatchewan has been around since 1975, and has been delivering world-class sport programs to people with intellectual disabilities in the province ever since.

Stephen Neiszner, the program coordinator for Kindersley and District, sheds a light on how athletes train for the Special Olympics.

“Athletes train in a number of ways, we don't just focus on sport specific training, we do cross training, fitness training, mental conditioning and public speaking training, The goal is to allow them to become a well rounded athlete and also a community member.”

Neiszner also explains how important the Olympics can be for athletes from a small, rural area.

“For athletes in smaller communities Special Olympics allows them to connect with people similar to themselves. They form friendships, confidence, self-esteem and other life skills being part of our programming. It also allows their families to connect with each other and find a support network. The athletes are allowed to work within their comfort level and as they continue to be part of the program the grow and become more outgoing. Locally we have had a number of athletes who, when they started, would hardly engage with anyone at bowling, now he is know singing in band who was at Telemiracle in 2019. To see the growth of our athletes is amazing and hard to explain. However, then their parents come up to you and say thank you as they see the growth, it's great.”

Specific to Kindersley, athletes will be able to train for 5 Pin Bowling and Snowshoeing. Other sports at the Special Olympics will include Alpine skiing, curling, figure skating, floor hockey, and speed skating.

Kindersley held a bake sale on September 26th to help raise money for their athletes Jon Anderson, who takes part in snowshoeing, and Rachelle Doll, who is working on her 5 Pin Bowling skills.