More than 350 athletes and 124 coaches participated in the 2010 Special Olympics Pennsylvania (SOPA) State Floor Hockey Tournament last weekend. This statewide competition returned to Bald Eagle Area High (BEA) School District for the fourth consecutive year. 

The tournament featured the theme of “The Party Starts Here… Countdown to 40 Years” in early celebration of SOPA’s 40th anniversary this May. Sheetz, GEICO, UPMC, US Airways, The Palumbo Charitable Trust, and The Buncher Foundation are the premier sponsors of this year’s event.

Matthew Aaron, SOPA President and CEO, said, “We are fortunate to have Emily Catherman, Event Director and her committee made up of students from Bald Eagle Area School District and the community who have worked tirelessly to make this event a memorable one for our athletes and families.”

SOPA athletes and coaches from the following programs competed: Adams, Allegheny, Area M, Bedford, Berks, Blair, Butler, Cambria, Clearfield, Clinton, Crawford, Delaware, Lycoming, Montgomery, Monroe and a team from Manhattan, New York. 

About Special Olympics Pennsylvania

Special Olympics Pennsylvania provides year-round training and competition in 22 Olympic-type sports to more than 20,000 children and adults with intellectual disabilities or closely related developmental disabilities.  For more information about how you can Be a Fan, visit our web site at www.specialolympicspa.org.