Special Olympics cancels events

Special Olympics Pennsylvania Inc. announced Tuesday that all sports training and other activities scheduled in March have been canceled due to the spread of the coronavirus.

People with intellectual disabilities and the elderly are especially vulnerable to contracting the virus, said a statement by Matthew B. Aaron, president and CEO of Special Olympics Pennsylvania.

Statewide, the nonprofit serves 20,000 athletes, including 250 in Berks County.

In Berks, the aquatics, basketball and softball practices are canceled, and two local aquatics competitions on March 21 and 29 with teams from Berks, Lebanon and Lancaster counties are canceled.

Multi-sport training scheduled on March 22 in

Plymouth Meeting, Montgomery County, is postponed. A new date is not yet available.

The decision to cancel the events was made after the Special Olympics officials consulted with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Washington, and the World Health Organization, based in Geneva, Switzerland.

The indoor winter games,which were scheduled last weekend in York County, were cancelled due to the outbreak of the virus in the U.S.

“The health of our athletes is on the forefront of what we do,” said Hailey Fuzak, Special Olympics Pennsylvania spokeswoman based in Norristown. “We are trying to keep our staff and our athletes safe. Everyone works hard to train for these events. They are understanding.”

Fuzak said the athletes were disappointed, but understood the need to cancel the competition.

On Feb. 29 a woman who played in a Special Olympics basketball tournament in Fremont, Neb., was hospitalized is critical condition suffering from the coronavirus, according to reports in the Omaha World-Herald.

Special Olympics Pennsylvania will re-evaluate the situation at the end of the month to determine if activities will resume.

State and local fundraising events that do not include the athletes may proceed on a case-by-case basis.