Special Olympics team breaking new ground
The New Zealand Special Olympics basketball team will break new ground at the World Summer Games in Berlin next month when they compete as a unified team for the first time.
The team, made up of players with and without an intellectual disability, will be adding the finishing touches to their preparation in their final training camp in Pukekohe, supported by coach Jamie Reddish from the Franklin Basketball Association, which will include competing in a unified 3x3 competition.
Head coach Simone Kokaua from Waikato said unified teams were the future of Special Olympics and the true embodiment of inclusion.
‘‘In most cases we talk about inclusion, when our athletes are allowed to compete into everyone else’s world, but we think that real inclusion is when we include the outside world into our world.’’
The New Zealand team will compete in the 3x3 competition in Berlin, with the support of experienced 3x3 coach Wi Te Pou from Counties.
The squad is made up by Special Olympics players Nathan Winkelman from Canterbury, Laura Montgomery from Hutt Valley, Hayden Wilson from Manawatū , alongside with their unified partners Reuben Tearle and Jazmyn McGregor from Counties.
Kokaua said her team was made up of players with incredible ball skills and athletic abilities and would make a real impression at the World Summer Games, where 7000 athletes from 190 nations will compete across 26 sports. With the mixture of players with and without a disability, some countries will use the opportunity to add high calibre players to their teams who can dominate the games and the competition.
‘‘Some teams will be there only to win, which is not in the spirit of the Special Olympics, but the organisers will have observers at our unified games to ensure all players on the team get roughly the same court time and touches on the ball to avoid one really good player dominating a game,’’ said Kokaua, who added the observers would intervene and warn teams if they play outside the spirit of the games.
The basketball head coach will bring her experience from two previous World Summer Games in Los Angeles in 2015 and Abu Dhabi in 2019, and said she would be just as focused on preparing her team for what to expect off the court, as the actual basketball aspect. ‘‘We will talk a lot of what to expect, but also make sure their voices are heard, and we understand if they might get worried or anxious about what is lying ahead.’’
The opening ceremony on June 17 in the historic Olympiastadion in Berlin is already sold out with 80,000 spectators, but Kokaua was not concerned her athletes would be overwhelmed by the enormity of the event.
‘‘In Los Angeles and Abu Dhabi we also had huge crowds, but the athletes loved it. With thousands of people waving, most athletes were convinced they are all waving at them personally, so they really enjoyed it.’’
The Waikato-based coach said Canterbury’s Nathan Winkelman was the tall timber of the team, ‘‘our kahikatea tree’’, who has a real presence on the court, while Hutt Valley’s Laura Montgomery shoots like superstar Steph Curry, and Manawatū player Hayden Wilson has great skills driving to the hoop with accurate shooting.
Their skills will be complimented by their unified partners from Counties, Jazmyn McGregor and Reuben Tearle.
‘‘They are both valued members of our team and have a beautiful manner of guiding our Special Olympics athletes to improve their skills and build their confidence in each other.’’
The New Zealand delegation of 39 athletes and 22 support staff and coaches will leave for Germany on June 7 for an acclimatisation camp and the host city programme near Munich, before they travel to Berlin on June 15 ahead of the opening ceremony.