sa国际传媒sa国际传媒 City Park was filled with the sounds of upbeat music, cheering and laughter Saturday as over 450 people spent the day playing for a good cause as part of the 12th Motionball Marathon of Sport.
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鈥淚tsa国际传媒 essentially fun day for adults, is how we like to describe it,鈥 said Derek Fuhr, the director for the Motionball sa国际传媒 event.
All the money from Saturdaysa国际传媒 event goes to the Special Olympics Canada Foundation, whose mission is to enrich the lives of Canadians with an intellectual disability through sport.
The Special Olympics of sa国际传媒 receives 70% of the money raised at sa国际传媒 event, while 25% goes to the Special Olympics Canada Foundation national program to insure the longevity of the Special Olympics Canada movement.
As well, 5% of the funds raised at Motionball goes to the #nogoodway national anti-bullying campaign to eliminate the use of the word retard in everyday conversation.
Each team of 10 players that signs up for Motionball is joined by two Special Olympics athletes. Team members encourage one another as they participate a marathon of sport that includes soccer, road hockey, bocce ball and bench ball, a version of dodgeball.
The event is called a marathon because every 20 minutes throughout the day, teams move to a different sport.
This year saw a record 64 Special Olympics athletes as part of 32 teams.
Roy Stephens, an honorary athlete, looks forward to Motionball every year.
For him, the best part of Motionball is all the sports he gets to play and meeting new people.
Stephens鈥 face glowed as he proudly talked about scoring two goals playing soccer before moving over to Kin-Ball, where team members try to keep a large inflated ball in the air.
Teammates Natasha Grossi and Alyssa Sadi, a Special Olympics athlete in Frisbee, were grinning as they moved to the music while standing together on a bench during bench ball.
It was Sadisa国际传媒 first time at Motionball, but Grossisa国际传媒 second.
鈥淚 love that itsa国际传媒 so inclusive,鈥 said Grossi. 鈥淭he day is fun; you get to play sports and fundraise for a great cause.鈥
鈥淢otionball brings tears to my eyes each time I come,鈥 said Anabel Stanley, head coach for the local Special Olympics cross country team as well as head coach for the Canadian Special Olympics team heading to Turin, Italy in March 2025.
Stanley loves seeing the inclusion of the athletes, the comradeship and everyone enjoying themselves all day.
鈥淚tsa国际传媒 way more fun than sitting down to a dinner fundraiser,鈥 she said.
Stanleysa国际传媒 son, Francis, who was named Special Olympics Canadasa国际传媒 2022 Athlete of the Year, has been to Motionball many times, but currently lives in Golden to pursue his cross-country ski training.
Francis will be returning home before competing in Turin in March 2025.
Robbie Jongewaard participates in Special Olympics curling, swimming and cross-country skiing.
His favourite sport is curling, he said, but he was showing skills in another sport Saturday.
His Motionball teammate, Curtis Moody, said Jongewaard had just scored five goals playing soccer.
鈥淚t felt good,鈥 said Jongewaard.
The teammates were off to play bocce, where Moody speculated Jongewaardsa国际传媒 skill at curling might make the athlete a star player again.
Saturday was the third Motionball event for Alex Haberstock, a Special Olympics athlete from Penticton who participates in swimming, bowling, hockey and dragon boating.
The Special Olympian loves grooving to the upbeat music all day at Motionball. His favourite game at Motionball is bench ball, where he stands on the bench and dances.
While Motionball is a big fundraiser for Special Olympics, the Haberstock family sees another benefit.
鈥淭he community plays with him,鈥 said Haberstocksa国际传媒 sister Evyn Rowe. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 just idolize him, be like 鈥極h, Special O鈥. They play and they see that he can play these sports.鈥
Whether teams win or lose, Fuhr said Motionball is about fun and inclusion.
鈥淭odaysa国际传媒 about understanding the difference you can make in a personsa国际传媒 life just by making them feel included,鈥 he said.
