Special Olympics athletes promise a show to remember

Put to one side just for a brief moment the unstinting efforts of the people behind the scenes.

The Special Olympic Games deserve to be a success for 2,700 reasons – the athletes who are taking part in what promises to be an extraordinary sporting festival in and around Leicester.

Of course, there is a large cast who have worked day and night to ensure that everything runs as smoothly as possible from the moment competition gets underway on Saturday morning.

But it is the competitors who will attract the crowds and provide the memories, just as they did in 1989 when Leicester first played host to the Special Olympics family.

The Games did not hold the profile that they have now and, in truth, the quality among competitors was some way from the levels currently being achieved.

But the 1989 Games did give the movement plenty to build on, using city venues such as St Margarets swimming pool, Granby Halls and Aylestone Leisure Centre.

I had the opportunity 20 years ago to follow a number of Special Olympic events which were staged in the city, and I look forward to covering some of the action second time around.

I freely admit that, at the time, I had little awareness of what the whole thing was about. I learned quickly, taking in a host of sports including cycling, gymnastics, swimming and basketball in a hectic week at the height of summer.

The standard of performances varied hugely back in 1989. Yet the enjoyment factor of those taking part was obviously massive – as was the level of commitment on view.

Since then standards have risen dramatically across the board in disability sport, something the Leicester Mercury has been able to recognise with a number of Special Olympics medallists picking up honours in the Mercury Sports Awards over the past dozen years.

The profile of the Games has steadily grown, too, hence the star billing that the Special Olympics rightfully holds on the county's sporting calendar this year.

Hopefully, Leicestershire's sporting public will back the event by turning out in good numbers to watch any of the 21 sports on view at venues around the city and county.

They will find it a worthwhile experience, too. That is not because they will be watching "plucky" participants "battling against the odds" – but because they will see talented athletes excelling at what they do.