San Antonio Athletes and Coaches to Depart for National Games
Team Texas Departs for National Games
In one week, 152 Texas athletes and 39 coaches will depart on the journey of a lifetime! Special Olympics Texas (SOTX) – San Antonio area athletes and coaches will travel on July 17 to Lincoln, Nebraska for the 2010 U.S.A. National Games!
The Games will be held on and near the University of Nebraska at the Lincoln campus, July 18-23. SOTX athletes will compete in aquatics, athletics, bocce, basketball, bowling, golf, gymnastics, powerlifting, soccer, softball, flag football, tennis and volleyball.
Thirty San Antonio area athletes and five coaches will be among those representing Team Texas at the Games. (See page two for a list of local participating athletes and coaches.) Athlete bios are available upon request. Updates and results on the Texas athletes will be available online at www.specialolympicstexas.org.
Travel Details
- Twenty-four San Antonio area athletes and coaches will travel by Cessna airplanes. The Cessnas will leave from the Citation Service Center at 1738 Skyplace Blvd. on July 17 from 11:45 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. The Cessna flights will return to the Citation Service Center on July 24 starting at 2:40 p.m., with the last flight arriving by 3:40 p.m.
- The athletes and coaches traveling on a commercial flight will meet outside of the Southwest ticketing area on July 17 at 6:45 a.m. at the San Antonio International Airport. The group will return to San Antonio at 2:55 p.m. on July 24.
Nationwide, more than 160 private jets have been donated, with many of the planes making multiple trips to bring athletes and take them home. The jets will be landing approximately every two minutes for a 9-hour period on Saturday, July 17.
* MEDIA NOTE: Media planning to cover the send off at the airports should notify the Media Contacts listed above in advance.
| ATHLETE NAME |
SPORT |
HOMETOWN |
| Earl Bell |
Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Craig Buscemi |
Basketball |
Live Oak |
| Daryl Carpenter |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Min Hai Che |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Herman "T.J" Crockett |
Unified Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Kenneth Dohmen |
Unified Basketball |
Cibolo |
| Leonard Flowers |
Unified Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Aimee-Rhae Galindo |
Athletics |
San Antonio |
| Johnny Garcia |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| William Goodrich |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Allen Green |
Bocce |
San Antonio |
| Joe Hardeman |
Basketball |
Universal City |
| David Hedges |
Bowling |
San Antonio |
| Stephen Kilpatrick |
Unified Basketball |
Cibolo |
| Dante Lewis |
Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Kristen Medley |
Athletics |
San Antonio |
| Zachary Mickaels |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Chuck "Consa" Newman |
Basketball |
Converse |
| David "D.J" Nicholson |
Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Jonathan Pilgrim |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Mark Rapolla |
Basketball |
Helotes |
| Matthew Rapolla |
Basketball |
Helotes |
| Wesley Reagan |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Joshua Ross |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Kimberly Taggart |
Unified Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Tim Taggart |
Unified Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Jessica Tunnell |
Aquatics |
San Antonio |
| Phillip Turner |
Softball |
Universal City |
| Daniel Van Kleef |
Unified Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Ruben Young |
Basketball |
San Antonio |
| COACH NAME |
SPORT |
HOMETOWN |
| Debra Blackwood |
Unified Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Helena Delgado |
Softball |
San Antonio |
| Paul Gustafson |
Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Shirley Johnson |
Basketball |
San Antonio |
| Becky Neff |
Aquatics |
Universal City |
About the 2010 Special Olympics USA National Games
The 2010 Special Olympics USA National Games in Lincoln, Nebraska will showcase and celebrate the Special Olympics movement and athletes from across the United States, while illustrating the power of sports to educate and inform about the true abilities and achievements of people with intellectual disabilities. From July 18-23, 2010, nearly 3,000 athletes will compete in 13 Olympic-style sports, with the support of 1,000 coaches, 8,000 volunteers and an estimated 15,000 family and friends. In addition to sports, the USA National Games will offer various programs in health, wellness and education. To learn more, visit www.2010specialolympics.org
About Special Olympics Texas
Special Olympics Texas is a privately funded non-profit organization providing year-round sports training and athletic competition for 36,311 children and adults with intellectual disabilities in the Lone Star State. Be a part of the movement that is CHANGING LIVES in your community. For more information, visit www.specialolympicstexas.org.
Special Olympics Texas Official Partners:
Coca-Cola Bottling Companies of Texas, Food Town, H-E-B Tournament of Champions
Charitable Trust and the Law Enforcement Torch Run
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Andi B. Kelly
Public Relations Coordinator
Special Olympics Texas
akelly@sotx.org
