The Special Olympics North America softball championship, featuring more than 30 teams from across the U.S. and Canada, is coming to Pittsburgh and the A-K Valley in September.
The No Offseason Sports facility on Little Deer Creek Valley Road near Russellton will host the event Sept. 6-8.
Officials from the Pittsburgh Pirates, USA Softball, local and national Special Olympics groups, SportsPittsburgh, VisitPittsburgh, the Sports and Exhibition Authority and No Offseason came together Wednesday morning at PNC Park to celebrate the announcement of the event and outline the many partnerships that will be instrumental in bringing the international event to the region.
“This means the world to us,” said Andrew Fee, executive director of the Three Rivers Region of Special Olympics Pennsylvania. “This is the first time ever that Special Olympics Pennsylvania and Special Olympics in the Pittsburgh area has ever hosted a national event. It is a big opportunity for us to shine some light on this sports town and bring some new champions to the City of Champions.
“We’re hoping to introduce people to and really change the mindset of what Pittsburgh is as a city. We’re all working towards that as fellow Yinzers. I am excited to welcome all of the Special Olympics athletes to the city and region.”
Special Olympics North America has more than one million athletes from Canada, the U.S. and the Caribbean participating in 32 sports.
“The local Special Olympics group and Andrew and his team in Western Pa. really drove this effort,” said Craig Pippert, director of sports development for Special Olympics North America. “We explored together how we could keep the best practices that we’ve had in the past.
“This will be our 18th year of the event. There are things we want to keep in place, but how we can improve on previous events and enhance the experience for the athletes, the partners, the coaches, the family members and all of the members of the local communities, that is what we are really looking to accomplish.”
Several of the athletes who will participate in the tournament at No Offseason attended the news conference and expressed their excitement for what will happen over the next few months in the Steel City.
“I am pretty excited to do this, and it will be a lot of fun to represent Pittsburgh,” said Kyle Lewis, a Gibsonia resident and second-year tournament participant who served as the news conference master of ceremonies.
Lewis said last year’s event in Lynchburg, Va., was a special time where he met a lot of people during a tournament that featured great competition. He said he isn’t sure if his own local team will represent Pittsburgh or if it will be some type of all-star collaboration of area players.
Brother and sister Rachel and Alex Miles from O’Hara Township again will take part in the tournament.
Teams will compete in a traditional format, where the entire team comprises Special Olympics athletes or individuals with intellectual disabilities, or in a Unified format, where the team is made up of Special Olympic athletes and others without intellectual disabilities called Unified partners.
These Unified partners, of which Alex Miles is one, train and compete alongside Special Olympic athletes.
“I’ve really enjoyed playing in previous Special Olympics softball championships because it is fun and enjoyable,” Rachel Miles said. “I played on a Unified team last year in Virginia. It was our first time in Virginia as a Unified team. I thought it went well. I really enjoy playing softball.”
Alex Miles added: “To me, Special Olympics is super important because it allows me to make a significant impact in the community around me and, at the same time, build tighter bonds with an organization that hits so close to home with me.
“Having grown up with Rachel, she’s participated with me in Special Olympic events, and then I went on to play college baseball. The perfect mix was being able to help out with the Unified team and play softball. Last year was an extremely positive experience in Virginia. There was great support from the local people, and all of the volunteers had great attention to detail that we are going to try and replicate this year.”
Featured Local Businesses
Pirates chairman Bob Nutting presented a special Pirates jersey to the softball athletes commemorating the upcoming tournament and expressed what it means to him and to the Pirates to be involved in this event.
“The Special Olympics is such a remarkable organization that does remarkable work, and we are certainly proud to be a small part of it,” Nutting said. “It is a program that has been near and dear to my heart for a long time. We’ve had the opportunity to be a part of some really special moments, and we treasure those. To be able to share our passion for sports and for competition and to help support these athletes and the work they are doing is a great honor for us.”
As much as the Special Olympics, Pirates and USA Softball partners are looking forward to bringing this event to Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, No Offseason Sports director of operations Joe Voloch and SportsPittsburgh executive director Jennifer Hawkins said they are just as pleased to be a part of hosting the event, which will bring several thousand people to the region in early September.
“We’re so very excited to be the host site,” Voloch said. “We’re five years into this (facility) being a reality, and it is almost a 40-acre complex. We’re excited to show it off, the fields and the top-of-the-line amenities. We have all-turf fields, and I know that is important for tournament officials because you never know what September weather will be like. We can’t wait to be a part of this amazing national event.”
In connection with the tournament, teams and participants will have the opportunity to attend a Pirates game during the four-game weekend series with the Washington Nationals.
Hawkins said this event is more than just a game or series of games for the athletes and those who make it their mission to provide these competition opportunities for the individuals and teams to make lasting memories.
“It’s more than just a champion being crowned in the City of Champions,” she said. “It is an opportunity to celebrate the diversity of sports events and athletes who bless our communities.”
Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.