the goan I network
PANAJI
Thousands of special children (boys/girls) from 24 special schools in the State and Centre for Blind (National Association for Blind, St Cruz branch) participated in the 2nd State Level Special School Sports Competitions Athletic Meet organised by the Sports Authority of Goa for the second year in succession at SAG Athletic Stadium, Bambolim from February 6-7.
The competitions were held in three different categories, grouped as per the needs of each special athlete participating in the competitions, namely, 1. Intellectually Disabled (ID) lower ability / higher ability groups, 2. Hearing Impaired (HI) and Learning Disabilities (LD); age wise. 3. Visually Impaired (Low/ high degree of visual impairment.
Track and field events such as sprints (25, 50, 100, 200 mtrs - Boys/Girls), relays (4x 100 - Boys/Girls), walks, long jump, shot put, soft ball throws (Boys/Girls) were held for two days, which showcased the sporting prowess of the special athletes to the special schools fraternity and all throughout Goa. Further competitions in ringo stick, bocce, swimming, badminton and table tennis for special children (Boys/Girls) will be also held as per the schedule devised by SAG in collaboration with the Special Schools Management, in this scholastic year of 2018-19.
This year the competition saw an increase in the number of participating schools to 24 as compared to 22 special schools last year. Significant to note was that children from National Association for Blind, St Cruz branch, participated for the first time in any sporting event in Goan history. Last year’s key moment was the participation of Hearing Impaired children (HI Category) participating for the first time in any such organised sporting event.
