Their season began more than a month ago, but the hard work, training, and dedication finally paid off on Saturday, Feb. 16. When Special Olympics of Rhode Island, in cooperation with Campus Ministry, sponsored the Traditional Basketball Tournament in the Peterson Recreation Center .

"This is a culmination of a couple months of training," said Sara Fallahi '10, a member of Campus Ministry who helped organize the event. "We have a group here on campus and we reached out to help the Rhode Island Special Olympics. We help them to keep from worrying about the details. We handle catering, the chairs, and just generally help out."

According to Fallahi, the tournament, which served as the championship event for their season, drew participants from a number of Rhode Island towns, including Woonsocket and Bristol .

"The goal of Special Olympics is to provide a social setting in which the athletes are able to interact with their peers," said Fallahi. "The hope is to get people with mental and physical disabilities involved in extra-curricular activities."

In preparation for the games, which began at 9:00 a.m., the food and set-up crews arrived at 7:45 a.m. Rev. Augustine Judd, O.P. opened the ceremony by giving a welcoming invocation and blessing for the games.

Following the blessing, Providence College student Marie Putko '10 sang the National Anthem. The traditional Special Olympic proclamation, "Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt," was then recited as an athlete ran around the track, carrying the customary Olympic Torch, to conclude the opening ceremonies.

According to Fallahi, trophies, along with gold, silver, and bronze medals were given to the athletes at the end of the tournament and everyone received a ribbon for their participation.

"The tournament featured many games with teams of different overall abilities. So, while one team may have won one game of the tournament, that win cannot compare with the other games. Rhode Island Special Olympics brought ribbons of participation for all of the athletes; so, in that sense, everyone was a winner," Fallahi said after the tournament.

"The athletes were so excited to be a part of the tournament, and just being there was an award in itself. One athlete informed me that he owned 200 trophies from participating in Special Olympics."

Volunteers from Providence College and the Rhode Island Special Olympics also helped contribute to the tournament by carrying out a number of tasks such as keeping score, commentating on the game, and giving trophies and awards during the final ceremonies. There were also court monitors who managed the athletes and made sure that no problems or disagreements slowed down the pace of the games.

Fallahi said that she saw the event as a great success because of the strong support that it received from the College community and passion of athletes who partook in the Saturday's basketball tournament.

"Overall, the Special Olympics Traditional Basketball Tournament was a major success, a testament to the hard work of the volunteers, coordinators, coaches, and parents. I received indispensable help from many people on campus, including Ed Laprey, the director of intramural sports, physical plant, Hurley workers, and safety and security. Also, Special Olympics was well-prepared with equipment and volunteers. Casie Rhodes, the director of Rhode Island Special Olympics, knew all of the coaches and athletes, which made running the event much easier," said Fallahi. "Most importantly, the event ran smoothly due to the number of volunteers. There were more than 115 volunteers, all of whom were students at PC. I could not believe it when 50 volunteers signed up for set-up. Their collaboration helped the event and set-up process to be efficient. The PC students were enthusiastic and their positive attitudes set the stage for a successful event. The athletes had a blast, especially when they ate pizza and danced to music during lunch time. The Special Olympians enjoyed the tournament and Special Olympics of Rhode Island appreciated the work that Providence College put in to run the event. To me, the athletes' enthusiasm and the generosity of PC students made the ministry worthwhile and the event a huge success."

Many of the coaches for these teams came from various parts of Rhode Island and have a strong passion for the game and a desire to help special athletes. Those wishing to become a coach for any team in the Rhode Island Special Olympics must go through an extensive program. Prospective coaches are given a general orientation, a sports skills course, a principles of coaching course, a tactics course, and must take a mentoring program.

Upon certification, coaches are expected to uphold the values of the organization. In order to insure that the quality of coaching remains at a premium, coaches are expected to pass a course provided by the Special Olympics of Rhode Island once every four years.

Once they have become a coach, these men and women assist and encourage the athletes, provide equipment, teach necessary skills, and help with ancillary duties related to the Special Olympics organization.