By Shannon Lukens.
The skiers and riders with the SOSY team have started up their season with practices at Steamboat Resort.
SOSY is Special Olympics Steamboat & the Yampa Valley. They’re sponsored by STARS, which is Steamboat Adaptive Recreational Sports.
The 15 participants practice at Steamboat Resort on Sundays. The numbers have nearly doubled this year from eight the season before. This includes athletes with special needs from Steamboat Springs, Hayden, and one from Craig.
Melissa Pollack is the Special Olympics Coordinator in the Yampa Valley.
“Every practice we try to get gates so we go up to Bashor and we work towards gates and we work on different drills to help with some of their race skills.”
The athletes practice gates and overall skiing with two coaches. Pollack is one along with Meghan Dolliff. There are other volunteer coaches.
The program is funded through STARS and the local Special Olympics group, along with fundraisers. The lessons are free for the participants. They meet at the STARS office at the base of Steamboat Resort.
The team’s first competition is at Sunlight Mountain Resort Jan. 31 for regionals. Those athletes will then compete at Copper Mountain, March 1-2.
- July 26, 2023 — The Special Olympics Steamboat and Yampa Valley (SOSY) team competes this weekend
- June 13, 2024 — Local Special Olympics residents are practicing for summer tourneys
- Special Olympics Colorado
