Soccer

With the ball sitting at midfield of Glenn Warner Soccer Facility at the Naval Academy surrounded by a breathtaking backdrop of the Severn River with beautiful sailboats one-by-one sailing into port, it’s the perfect weather for one of the biggest events of the year. There’s a boat of Navy sailors docking in the distance. It’s a day of celebration for inclusion, for MLS, and for Special Olympics.

Renowned Guatemalan national team member and international soccer player, Maria Fernanda Rossell, is making an impact on and off the pitch as a coach at Special Olympics World Games Berlin 2023.

During the iconic closing bell ceremony, Kristina Ayanian gave a warm welcome to Special Olympics athletes, ambassadors and leaders who joined her on stage to celebrate the Special Olympics Unified Cup 2022 kicking off in Detroit, MI on 31 July.

Amber Radford, a Special Olympics North Carolina coach, shares how the impact she has on all the athletes affects her. She details her start with the movement.

Coach Jack Nagle, a two-sport coach, was named a SONA outstanding coach. After three decades of coaching, he is lucky enough to watch athletes for an entire lifetime.

Njegoš Mihajlović, athlete leader and Special Olympics medallist has become the first person with intellectual disabilities to enrol in a University in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In the beginning of 2008, after attending two years of college, I felt a strong pull towards the military. I was a respectable student, but I wanted to experience something more than what my school could offer. I needed to be a part of something that was bigger than myself and ultimately push me to be a better individual. In July of 2008, I enlisted in the United States Army as part of the Military Police. I completed Basic Combat Training and One Station Unit Training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. There, I learned how to be a soldier.