It's official -- Nova Scotia Special Olympic winter games coming to Yarmouth

The games are scheduled for Friday to Sunday, Feb. 20 to 22, and will bring together an estimated 300 to 400 athletes and coaches from across the province.

Gary Hudson, the regional coordinator for Special Olympics in Yarmouth County, expects having the games will be good for the local Special Olympic program in particular and for the Yarmouth area in general.

“I think it’s going to be great,” he said in an interview in advance of the official announcement.

“It’s a huge opportunity for Yarmouth Special Olympics to showcase our athletes in their hometown.”

He hopes plenty of people will turn out to see the games, saying hosting them will be a chance to raise public awareness of Special Olympics and what Special Olympians can do.

“Our athletes train just as hard as any other athlete,” he said.

The 2009 games will feature various sports, including floor hockey, curling, speed skating, figure skating, skiing and snowshoe competition.

(The skiing and snowshoe events may be replaced by bowling if there’s no snow.)

Asked what happens now that Yarmouth’s selection as host of the games is official, Hudson says local organizers have to look at fundraising, securing venues and getting volunteers.

Between 200 and 300 or so people will be needed to help out when the games are held. Volunteers will be required – to cite a few examples – to help serve food, to serve as timekeepers and the like for competitions and to help provide security where the athletes will be staying.

Hudson acknowledges that the anticipated number of volunteers needed for the games is quite a bit lower than the figure that was mentioned during a public meeting in late March.

As for what the games could mean for Yarmouth economically, Hudson says it’s more than just a matter of having people come to town on a winter weekend, noting that there could be longer-term spin-offs if visitors who are here for the games enjoy themselves and decide to come back later.

Hudson, who has been involved in Special Olympics since the early 1990s, says many people have been a part of Special Olympics locally over the years – as athletes, coaches, volunteers etc. – and they deserve credit for their efforts.

“Without them,” he said, “we wouldn’t be what we are and where we are today.”