EWU hosts Special Olympics’ basketball tournament

Photo by Josh Friesen

Washington athletes learn life lessons

By Josh Friesen

This is the eighth year that EWU has hosted the East Region Basketball Tournament. This year, there were over 40 teams participating with families coming  from as far away as Yakima, Wash.East Region Sports and Program Manager Jill Ives has been event’s coordinator for the past ten years.
To her, the satisfaction of watching the athletes play is worth the endless hours of preparation.

“After doing all the planning for the event, … you actually get to see the athletes compete against each other,” Ives said. “My biggest take-away is happy families [and] happy athletes.”

Ives believes that the event is important not only because it instills the value of sportsmanship but it also imparts daily living skills.

“[Special Olympics] provides an opportunity for people with intellectual disabilities to compete with individuals of equal ability,” she said.

For Davenport, Wash. native Jenna Sterner, the tournament is a great way to get her 24-year-old brother Clay to socialize with others. Sterner first heard about the Special Olympics through a friend. After some questioning about age requirements, she got her brother involved right away. Although traveling for practices is the biggest obstacle for her and her brother, Sterner feels that everything else works out fine. She did mention,however, that if she was closer, her brother Clay would be more involved.

Sterner believes there are no winners or losers and that as long as you work hard, you will succeed.

“You don’t have to win to be great,” Sterner said.

According to Ives, the biggest obstacle is finding an adequate amount of volunteers. Nonetheless, that obstacle is usually always short-lived due to the outpouring of local support.

Due to the support of the Cheney community, [we are] beyond the number of volunteers [needed],” she said.

Cheney High School students Karen McCormick and Angela Houston volunteered because they enjoyed meeting the athletes. They were in charge of handing out metals and ribbons.McCormick decided to volunteer for the Special Olympics basketball tournament for the experience. Another reason Houston volunteered was because she enjoyed spending time with the athletes on the court.

“I’m excited to see their reactions when they get awards,” Houston said.

EWU students Quinita Whitfield and Ryan Douse also sought out the opportunity to volunteer at the event.Whitfield and Douse both refereed basketball games. According to Douse, he enjoyed the excitement the athletes exhibited on the court.

“You can tell they want to be here and they just love to play,” Douse said. “To see them make a basket and pump their fist to the crowd, it’s pretty cool.”

If someone asks Ives what it takes to be a champion at the Special Olympics, she won’t mention anything about winning. Instead, terms like sportsmanship, workethic and fun come to her mind.

“Give it your overall best. That’s what we ask of these athletes,” she said. “They might not win the game, but as long as they gave their personal best, … they’re a champion.”