- Let's keep the fun going now with some true Olympic spirit.

Special Olympics Michigan host world-class athletes from near and far as they go after the gold and winning can look different for everyone.

Kylie took a visit to the group's United Sports and Inclusion Center to chat with some of our local athletes and key players in the Special Olympics movement.

- The Special Olympics have been around since 1968 empowering people with intellectual disabilities to seek new heights in their sports and grow lasting friendships along the way.

But did you know that here in West Michigan, we host the world's largest Special Olympics training facility?

Today we're talking with Special Olympics Michigan to learn more.

(gentle music) - Special Olympics Michigan is really an inclusion movement and we utilize the power of sports to change the world.

We wanna essentially end discrimination for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

In the summer of 2019, we purchased a former high school with the goals of transforming it into a Special Olympics Michigan training competition facility.

It had multiple gymnasiums, got an auditorium and on 17 acres.

So it is the world's largest Special Olympics facility that's dedicated to athletes in training.

We never really had our own place to practice.

So for our athletes, anytime they would go to a competition, it's because we were renting out a facility and they were practicing on someone else's fields and gyms.

The other great component is that is it's not just a special Olympics Michigan building, we have the word inclusion in there because we want this to be a place in welcoming from others.

We have 10 amazing other organizational partners that have space right here that run programs and services.

So someone may be able to come and have a basketball practice, but they wanna know about benefit services or independent living.

So you have disability advocates of Kent County.

They're wondering, maybe, what's the step for residential services?

There's a Thresholds, families who have a loved one, child, a support member on the autism spectrum.

We have two amazing organizations, Autism Support of Kent County and Autism Alliance.

So really it's a spot for where families can come in and learn and support.

So trying to take some of the ease out of navigating some difficult systems.

The innovation, the programmatic collaboration has been fantastic.

And so we really want it to be a spot for Special Olympics Michigan, but really the entire West Michigan community as well.

One of the great things about Special Olympics is that there's something for everyone, right?

So we have athletes that are just learning a specific sport and it's individual or team sport and we have skills and developmental.

Then one of the things that separates us from sports organization is divisioning.

And so we have athletes at a extremely high level of competition and again, athletes that are learning and all of them is working to strive to be better and compete and train.

Just next year in February is the Special Olympics International World Winter Games, 2025 Torino.

And we have four athletes from Michigan that are gonna make our state so proud, that they're gonna be competing in alpine skiing and cross country skiing.

And so we love it that it's a grassroots level organization, but also has opportunities for the world to see, our athletes.

(gentle music) The athletes are really the true leaders of Special Olympics and the Special Olympics movement.

I get to have the nice title, but every day I'm the one that's learning from our athletes and leadership and perseverance and grit and joy.

We've got fantastic athlete leaders all throughout our state programs.

(gentle music continues) - Currently I play in basketball, but after basketball, I'm gonna get into volleyball too, this year.

I got involved because I have a disability and sometime it's hard for me to try to focus on schoolwork and all that.

Special Olympics helps me get my mind off of it and it helps me stay active and healthy and move around a lot.

I've been with SOMI for 10 years I started out at eighth grade.

For years we traveled around, we didn't really have a place to call home, but now this building, SOMI, it's nice because we can call this home.

For being an athlete leader helps guide the way for all the other athletes lighting the torch, giving that pride and hope and feels nice.

Hopefully playing here and playing basketball and guiding them, help him make easier in life.

(gentle music continues) - So Brittan, he was the first athlete who was employed by Special Olympics Michigan at this facility.

And it's really cool because I'll see him during the day he's always got a great smile on his face and the staff love being around him.

And then I'll see him at poly hockey practice and he's a different person because he is out there and going down the court and slapping shots and so it's really cool to be able to see the different sides.

(gentle music continues) - My dad's family, not my mom's side of the family grew up bowling, doing tournaments and then also they were big on just, it was their passion, so that's when I started.

When I was born, I started to think of, okay, what do I wanna do?

So I did bowling for a lot of years.

So bowling was the biggest part of our family.

(gentle music continues) SOMI was a big part of my life because I interned here, but not only in the building, but in three different organizations, so it's important because not only in my building friendships, but a lifetime and I feel loved around people that are in the building.

Being around here makes me a better person every day.

So it makes me not only a better athlete, but a better teammate and a better staff member.

(gentle music continues) - As we say, special Olympics Michigan, we're not a charity, our athletes aren't looking for a handout, they're looking for a hand up.

Our goal is that other programs will see this by example.

The value of collaboration, the value of partnerships, the value of athlete led leadership.

And that's what I'm really excited for.

We have over 20,000 athletes who participate in sports and activities, but we don't have that without coaches, without chaperones.

And so really encourage folks to connect with Special Olympics Michigan to get involved.

And as we continue to expand, so expand with this beautiful facility.

We have over 500 schools here in Michigan that are Unified Champion Schools that have programming of Special Olympics.

But it also means we need more volunteers to get involved because they're really the backbone of the services that we have.

(upbeat theme music) - Celebrating vibrant people, captivating places, and remarkable things.

This is "Living West Michigan."

(upbeat theme music continues)