12 swimmers, 6 basketball teams, 3 tennis players, and 2 individual skills athletes represented Philadelphia at the 2017 Eastern Spring Sectional on Saturday, May 6th at Kutztown University. They joined athletes from Area P, Bethlehem City, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Chester, Columbia/Montour, Delaware, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Monroe, Northumberland/Snyder, Montgomery, and Schuylkill. The total number of athletes at this event was 1150 across six different sports!  With the theme of “Under the Big Top” our athletes performed on the court and in the pool. Although there weren’t any elephants or tigers, our athletes gave wonderful performances in each of their events. 

Things got started at 9:00 am with clouds looming overhead signaling a rainy day, but the rain held off, even though it pushed Opening Ceremonies indoors. Although everyone was indoors for Opening Ceremonies, the gymnasium was loud with excitement. Rebecca Konen from KutzTones, Kutztown University’s a cappella group sang the national anthem. Kutztown University’s Cheerleading team escorted athletes during the Parade of Athletes. Kutztown University President, Dr. Kenneth Hawkinson, spoke words of encouragement and pride that his school hosts the Eastern Spring Sectionals before wishing athletes the best of luck. Kutztown Dance Team performed for our athletes and it got the crowd energized for the competition that would soon follow. After their performance, the games were declared open and everyone scattered to see what the big top had in store!

After preliminary competitions, our basketball teams found out their course – and it gave them a welcomed challenge. In their final games, they were able to show off the skills they had been working on and captured a spot on the podium. In the pool, there were some close races as our athletes sprinted down the pool and paced themselves in the longer distances. On the tennis courts, one of our athletes showed off their individual skills in the forehand volley, backhand volley, forehand groundstroke, backhand groundstroke, serve – deuce court, serve ad court, and alternating strokes with movement. 

#SOPASpringEast

Results

Aquatics

	Event	Time	Place
Emmet Abdo	25M Freestyle	:25.75	1st
	50 Backstroke	1:52.36	1st
	50 Freestyle	1:05.03	2nd
Joseph Barut	25M Freestyle	:34.89	3rd
	50 Backstroke	1:47.51	2nd
	50 Freestyle	1:22.98	5th
Ian Capacio	800 Freestyle	13:38.45	2nd
	200 Butterfly	3:22.89	1st
	200 Individual Medley	3:16.28	2nd
Kelsey Greenwald	200 Freestyle	4:08.45	1st
	100 Freestyle	1:59.85	4th
	400 Freestyle	8:56.19	1st
Katelyn Joyce	50 Backstroke	1:10.80	2nd
	100 Freestyle	2:33.94	5th
	100 Butterfly		DQ
Heather Lutts	100 Freestyle	2:41.91	2nd
	25 Butterfly	:45.28	1st
	50 Breaststroke	1:41.47	1st
Jackie Lutts	50 Backstroke	1:08.98	1st
	100 Freestyle	2:01.34	5th
	50 Freestyle	:52.65	3rd
Matthew Malyj	100 Breaststroke	3:37.15	3rd
	25 Backstroke	:28.81	3rd
	100 Freestyle	2:14.97	1st
Brian Meehan	100 Backstroke	2:16.17	3rd
	25 Breaststroke	:37.75	2nd
	200 Freestyle	4:38.69	3rd
Katie Moore	100 Butterfly	2:26.16	1st
	200 Individual Medley	5:04.42	1st
	400 Freestyle	10:25.23	1st
Anthony Powell	25M Freestyle	:58.47	2nd
	50 Backstroke	2:16.00	1st
	25 Butterfly	:46.41	1st

 

Basketball

Individual Skills

Jason Sobrinno

Teams

Team	Team Members	Coaches	Place
Ballers	Derrell Sutton, Brian Stulz, Charlie Zisette, Matthew Everett, Carl Irvis, Derrick Jackson, Josh Harris, Corey Sweet, Danny Charlton, Jason Bixby	Ryan Milanaik	3rd
Blazers	Joshua Gaskin, Robald Atkins, Sam Fioravanti, Matt Beckman, William Strauser, Miguel Lebron, Allison Rutzier, Ernest Swanson, Danny Amrik	Walt Beckman	2nd
Hoops	Michael Castillo, Aida Ortiz, James Shelton, Stanley Dluzniewski, Jonathan Naissance, Kristie Walls, Kelly Dluzniewski, David Brent Williams, Zachary Hollinger	Jon Garvey	3rd
Phlames	Matthew Grabowski, Kwanted Crummy, Ryan Bogan, Vernon Mayfield, Joe Rynkiewicz, Angel Rodriguez, Luis Cotto, Mitchell Stahl	Chris Muzi	3rd
Phlash	Nicole Stanley, James Fulton, Lateef Hiller, Corbin Whittington, Frank Olevsky, Nakisha Johnson, Benjamin Liken, James Trotman, Sebastian Zeiss, Trevor Thompson	Myra Ausberry	3rd
Rebels	Lavar Gladden, Anthony Glannigan,  Davon Clements, Demetrius LeFlore, Abdul Muhammad, Derrick Slef, Denzel McFadden, Kenneth Lamont, Michael Henderson, Christopher Ray	Will Holman	1st

 

Tennis

INDIVIDUAL SKILLS

Shawn Moton

Doubles

Elijah Williams & Christopher Newton

On Saturday, April 29th, Special Olympics Philadelphia held our 40th Annual Philadelphia Spring Games at William Penn Charter (3000 West School House Lane, Philadelphia, PA 19144) and it was an absolute success! We had a record-breaking event on numerous levels, including the number of counties hosted (six), the number of athletes competing,  and celebrity and political representatives! It looked like it would be a cloudy day when it started, but as we were about to start the sun came out.

The day started at 8:00 am at the Philadelphia Museum of Art with the Law Enforcement Torch Run. The Flame of Hope was escorted by law enforcement from the Upper Gwynedd Township Police Department, Philadelphia Police Department, lead by Deputy Commissioner Dennis Wilson. Members carried the Flame of Hope from the Philadelphia Museum of Art to William Penn Charter. At 9:00 am, Opening Ceremonies began enthusiastically as athlete Allie Rutizer, and Sports Anchor for Comcast SportsNet, John Boruk emceed the morning. To lead the parade of athletes, West Powelton Drum Squad lead the way before we introduced athletes from  Bethlehem City, Chester County, Delaware County,  Lehigh County, Montgomery County, and of course, Philadelphia County. Besides athletic teams, basketball teams, and tennis teams, we also welcomed our Young Athletes, Gymnastics Team, and athletes from School of the Future and some of our bocce athletes. Athletes in the parade were escorted by members of the Temple University Football Team. After the athletes took their seats, a remarkable edition of the National Anthem was sung by a parent, Denine Aversa as Frankford High Schools Junior ROTC Color Guard lead by Cadet Kevin Olsen presented the colors. 

Afterward, Director of Special Olympics PA – Philadelphia, Britt Kleine, spoke and introduced Mayor of Philadelphia, Jim Kenney, who gave words of his support of Special Olympics, appreciation for everyone involved, and encouragement for the athletes about to compete. After Mayor Kenney spoke, Councilman Derek Green spoke and presented Special Olympics PA – Philadelphia with a Citation from the City of Philadelphia to honor the 40th Anniversary of the Philadelphia Spring Games. Opening Ceremony ended with the Flame of Hope being brought in by the Law Enforcement Torch Run and escorted by, retired professional boxer, Bernard Hopkins. After the excitement of the Flame of Hope arriving at the 40th Annual Philadelphia Spring Games, Allie and John kept the energy high by proclaiming the Games Open!

Athletes parted ways to partake in athletics (track and field), basketball, and tennis competition. As competition started, our VIP guests got to participate in a Unified Bocce Experience with some of our community bocce athletes as well as athletes from our Interscholastic Unified School, School of the Future. Two courts were set up and after a brief training for our VIP guests, the experience was on its way! Everyone who participated had a great time and athletes played alongside our VIP guests. Our Young Athletes who are not old enough to compete as an official Special Olympics athlete, showed off their skills at William Penn Charter’s playground as they completed an obstacle course that was set up especially to show off their skills.

Besides competition, the Olympic Village offered a place for athletes to relax and do some fun activities while waiting for their turn to compete. In addition, sponsor PriceWaterhouseCoopers was at the grill, firing up some burgers, hot dogs and chicken sandwiches for spectators as well as selling some beverages and souvenirs. The day ended with athletes being awarded medals in order of their finish at their respective competition site. Everyone left happy, and for those athletics and tennis athletes – a little tanner!

Thank you to the coaches, assistant coaches, and families who helped all of our athletes prepare for the 40th Annual Philadelphia Spring Games! A huge thank you to all of the volunteers who made this day possible!

Results:

Athletics:

Coming Soon!

Basketball:

Team	Athletes	Place
Bad News Bears
Timberwolves
Wildcats
Ballers
Blazers
Hawks
Hoops
Phlames
Phlash
Rebels

 

Tennis:

Coming Soon!

 

Via Kristen Applegate YouTube channel on behalf of Temple University

 

Photos by Dane

 

PHOTOS: Special Olympics holds annual Philadelphia Spring Games at Penn Charter in East Falls

 

Thank you to our sponsors:

for making this event a celebration!

                        

 

     

 

The Gish Rockford Family

On Saturday, April 30th, 70 athletes represented Philadelphia at the 2016 Eastern Spring Sectional held at Kutztown University. Opening Ceremonies was filled with many performances including the KutzTones, Kutztown University’s A cappella group, singing the national anthem, Special Stars cheerleading team performing their routine, and Kutztown University Dance Team performing two numbers. During Opening Ceremonies, Fran Moore, Head Coach of Special Olympics Philadelphia Aquatics lead the coaches in the Coaches’ Oath. After the conclusion of Opening Ceremonies, our Philadelphia athletes joined over 1,000 athletes from the eastern part of Pennsylvania to compete in one of the six sports offered at the Eastern Spring Sectional – Athletics, Aquatics, Basketball, Golf, Softball, and Tennis.

Aquatics Results:

Joseph Barut	25 M Freestyle, :34.72	2nd Place
	50 M Backstroke, 1:39.10	1st Place
	25 M Backstroke, :47.81	1st Place
Ian Capacio	100 M Butterfly, 1:47.91	1st Place
	200 M Individual Medley	Participation
	800 M Freestyle, 12:20.22	3rd Place
Meghan Garlick	200 M Individual Medley	Participation
	100 M Backstroke, 1:48.37	1st Place
	200 M Breaststroke, 4:42.54	1st Place
Kelsey Greenewald	200 M Freestyle, 4:01.81	1st Place
	25 M Backstroke, :28.39	1st Place
	100 M Freestyle, 1:47.92	2nd Place
Katelyn Joyce	50 M Butterfly, 1:37.42	2nd Place
	100 M Freestyle, 2:38.29	2nd Place
	50 M Backstroke, 1:14.96	3rd Place
Heather Lutts	100 M Freestyle, 2:39.53	3rd Place
	50 M Backstroke, 1:18.87	5th Place
	25 M Butterfly, :41.29	1st Place
Jackie Lutts	100 M Freestyle, 1:54.71	4th Place
	50 M Backstroke, 1:06.78	3rd Place
	50 M Freestyle, :51.38	2nd Place
Matthew Malyj	25 M Breaststroke, :31.16	2nd Place
	50 M Breaststroke	Participation
	100M Freestyle, 2:13.53	1st Place
Brian Meehan	100 M Backstroke, 2:08.16	4th Place
	400 M Freestyle, 9:26.72	1st Place
	200 M Freestyle, 4:29.90	3rd Place
Katie Moore	800 M Freestyle, 19:33.35	2nd Place
	100 M Individual Medley, 2:13.82	2nd Place
	100 M Butterfly, 2:30.95	2nd Place
Jesse Rose	100 M Butterfly, 2:34.30	3rd Place
	200 M Backstroke, 4:21.59	1st Place
	800M Freestyle, 18:57.97	1st Place

 

Basketball Results:

Philly Phlames

Matthew Grabowski, Clifford Johnson, Kwante Crummy, Ryan Bogan, Joe Rynkiewicz, Angel Rodriguez, Charlie Zisette, Mitchell Stahl

Northwest Warriors

Lavar Gladden, Devone Clements, Nicole Stnaley, Demetrius LeFlore, Tyrone Durant, Abdul Muhammad, Frank Olevsky, Benjamin Liken, Michael Henderson, Denzel McFadden

Philly Phorce

Andrew Hooks, Matt Beckman, Sam Fioravanti, Ronald Atkins, William Strauser, Emest Swanson, Danny Amrik, Allison Rutizer

Philly Phlash

Lateef Hiller, James Fulton, Felipe Rivera, Kenny Lamont, James Trotman, Nakisha Johnson, Kyle Sheaff, Christopher Ray, Sharod King, Jonathon Watson, James Daly III, James Thorton

Philly Phever

Vernon Mayfield, Matthew Everett, Derrell Sutton, Luis Cotto, Brian Stulz, Carl Irvis, Derrick Jackson, Josh Harris, Danny Charlton, Corey Sweet

Philly Phusion

Emmett Abdo, Michael Castillo, Stanley Dluzniewski, James Shelton, Kelly Dluziewski, Kristie Walls, David Brent Williams, Bianca Pedulla, Anthony Gross, Aida Ortiz, Carlyn Robinson

All Photos

 

(Philadelphia, PA, April 10, 2015) – More than 250 Special Olympic Pennsylvania athletes, 300 volunteers and 50 coaches, from Philadelphia and the surrounding area, will migrate to the William Penn Charter School, located at 3000 W. School House Lane, on Saturday, April 18^th, for the 35^th Annual Spring Games Competition. Athletes will compete in athletics (track and field), basketball and tennis.

The 2015 Spring Games will kick off with local members of Law Enforcement running with the Flame of Hope from the Art Museum to Penn Charter School. The Torch is expected to arrive at 9:00a.m., prior to Opening Ceremonies.  The Ceremonies will include a parade of athletes, special guest speakers, and the lighting of the cauldron with Games immediately following and taking place until 3:30 p.m.

This year, through a new partnership, Maramont Corporation is donating lunches, snacks and refreshments for over 500 athletes, volunteers and coaches attending the 2015 Philadelphia Spring Games. The Maramont Corporation supplies pre-packaged food meals to various city agencies, provides lunches for the Philadelphia School District, and operates as a subsidiary of Prepared Meal Holdings, Inc.

Beyond competition and Opening Ceremonies, the Spring Games will feature a family-friendly Olympic Town that will provide entertainment for all. Members of the community are invited to join the festivities with their friends and families to experience the joy that sports provide for Special Olympics Pennsylvania athletes.

About Special Olympics Pennsylvania

Special Olympics Pennsylvania provides year-round training and competition in 21 Olympic-type sports to nearly 20,000 children and adults with intellectual disabilities or closely related developmental disabilities. For more information about how SOPA inspires greatness, visit our Web site at www.specialolympicspa.org.

The sun, along with hundreds of athletes, coaches, volunteers and fans, came out on Saturday to participate in the 2014 Philadelphia Spring Games! 2014 Spring Games: A Winning Event, was a beautiful day filled with laughter, joy and competition as athletes from around Pennsylvania came together to compete in their respective sports. Putting their hard work, training and dedication to the test, athletes competed for the added glory of winning a Special Olympics medal.

The Opening Ceremonies saw athletes joined by coaches and volunteers parade across the grandstands as spectators cheered them on. Law Enforcement was also out in full force supporting our great cause as they completed the final leg of the Law Enforcement Torch Run into the Games carrying the Flame of Hope, which led to the 2014 Spring Games being declared open by Global Messenger, Lisa Barbour.

Competitions in basketball, tennis, track and field and gymnastics kept our athletes busy and the spectators in awe throughout the day. A unique feature of this year’s Games was the Unified Basketball game that saw Special Olympic athletes joined by guest players from the University of Pennsylvania football team, as well as Dr. Arthur Evans and his deputy commissioner, Mr. David Jones. This wonderful group played in a friendly, yet fast-paced and exciting game of basketball to help kick off the Games! This Unified Basketball game was a perfect example of how sport can provide joy to everyone, together.

The day was absolutely marvelous and Philadelphia could not have asked for a better event! We would like to thank all of the athletes, coaches, volunteers and fans for participating in the day’s festivities and events, and for making it such an incredible day to remember! We look forward to an even bigger and better Games next Spring and wish everyone the best of luck in their competitions in the meantime!