A Weekend of SONH State Competition September 24-25
Athletes Return to Competition for largest weekend yet
Concord, NH (September 20, 2022) – Special Olympics New Hampshire (SONH) athletes continue their return to state-level competition. Following last month’s State Golf Competition in Thornton, New Hampshire athletes have been in training for State Softball on September 24th in Londonderry and a Bocce/Track and Field competition in Durham on the campus of UNH.
SONH Local Programs from Barrington, Concord, Keene and Nashua will field seven teams for tournament softball play on Saturday. “The Fusion Softball team is so excited to host the Special Olympics State Softball Tournament once again,” according to SONH Director of Programs Shelby Cote. She also explained some of the extra competitions that will be offered on Saturday saying, “The tournament will include Unified Slow Pitch competition, Individual Skills competition as well as a fun Home Run Derby for athletes who want to try their hand at hitting a home run while resting up in between competition!”
The Softball Tournament starts at 8:00am at the Londonderry Athletic Fields Association (LAFA) complex in Londonderry. Volunteer support for the State Softball Tournament includes personnel from New England Fusion Fastpitch and the Nashua Police Department.
On Sunday, September 25th SONH athletes will be returning to the UNH campus in Durham for State Bocce and State Track & Field competitions. These are milestones for SONH athletes after being away from most state-level competitions since the start of the pandemic.
Typically, SONH holds the State Summer Games on the UNH Campus in June of each year. While COVID-19 made that impossible in 2020 and 2021, there was a powerful desire to hold at least some level of state competition in Durham this year.
“We are well into the planning stages for programs and competitions in 2023,” said SONH President and CEO Mary Conroy. She notes that “Our more than 3000 athletes are more than ready to train, compete and win.”
For more information about Special Olympics New Hampshire go to www.SONH.org. For information about the Softball Tournament or the Fall Bocce/Track and Field event contact Mark Ericson at MarkE@sonh.org or call 603-498-5186.