Vanderbilt University prepares for arrival of Team USA delegation in July
Athletes and coaches are excitedly preparing themselves for their trip to Vanderbilt University in Nashville,
Tenn. on July 12-16. It's the 2007 Team USA Training Camp allowing athletes, their coaches and select
alternates to meet for the first time as the official Team USA delegation.
"The folks at Vanderbilt truly understand what we are trying to accomplish with this training camp," said Trish Mazzoni of Special Olympics Kentucky, who is also heading up plans for the camp as a director of the Special Olympics Team USA Management Team. "They are honored that their University was selected as the host site for the 2007 World Games Training Camp."
Head
coaches will set up their practice schedules as eight of the sports will be training
on campus and eight off campus. Athletes will also be taking part not only in
uniform sizing, but can also look forward to a fashion show, featuring athlete
models showing off the competition and casual wear the delegation will be seen
wearing in China during the Games.
In
addition, the delegation will take in some Chinese culture during "China night" as
well as some great entertainment from Nashville stars, including Team USA spokesperson
and country singer JoDee Messina, anxious to meet our delegation!
Host Town – A Time to Get Acclimated
After
spending about 13.5 hours on a flight to China, Team USA will need some time
to get acclimated to the new surroundings before competing in the 2007 Special
Olympics World Summer Games. That's where the Host Town experience comes in.
Team
USA will spend the first four days after arriving in China enjoying the Host
Towns. The majority of the team will head to Shanghai's District of Pudong (one of 19 districts similar to suburbs of a major U.S. city). A small number of team members will fly directly into Beijing for their Host Town experience. That group will then travel to Shanghai the day before the Opening Ceremonies.
"The main outcome for the Host Town experience is to get acclimated to the time zone and foods of China," said Kathy Meagher of Special Olympics North Dakota, and the management team director organizing Host Town for Team USA.
During
the Host Town experience, Team USA will be housed in hotels, but likely will
have the opportunity to visit Chinese homes and work with local citizens on food
preparation (such as Chinese noodles) and will engage in some activity with Chinese
people with intellectual disabilities.
In
addition, the Host Town experience exposes and introduces the athletes to the
Chinese culture, and educates people in China about children and adults with
intellectual disabilities. There will also be some time for light sports training.
Next
Page >> |
