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ENKENBACH-ALSENBORN, Germany — Their smiles proclaimed them winners — exuberant and infectious, or a bit shy, but always radiant.
Countless faces sported huge smiles at the Kaiserslautern Special Olympics May 12 at the German Police Academy here.
Neither the dreary overcast skies nor the unseasonable cold could dim the smiles of the 800 athletes who participated in the games and the 1,650 volunteers who made it all possible. The athletes, between the ages of 8 and 70, came from 58 schools and institutions throughout Germany, including 19 Department of Defense Dependents Schools, Europe.
The Special Olympics, an international program of athletic competition for children and adults with developmental disabilities, was hosted by U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern for its 27th year. As in the past 11 years, they were co-hosted by and held at the grounds of the German Police Academy in Enkenbach-Alsenborn.
“This wonderful event demonstrates the great partnership we have with the police academy,” said Mark Heeter, the public affairs officer at USAG-K. He said the hosts tackled an incredible amount of planning and coordination to make this a first-class event.
“In the end, everyone was a winner. In the end, even the sun smiled on us — for about five minutes or so,” he said.
Many olympians, including Holger Jotter, 16, a student at the Siegmund-Crämer-School in Bad Dürkheim, Germany, wore smiles — smiles that certainly outlasted and outshone the sun.
“He is having so much fun, it’s contagious. He played softball and then we stood in line for three competitions, but he changed his mind. He is having fun just seeing everyone and feeling the incredible atmosphere, this incredible excitement,” said his buddy, Tech. Sgt. Scott Noggle, a network administrator with the Air Force on Ramstein.
Volunteer buddies simultaneously fill the role of personal coach, cheerleader and friend for the event. Sergeant Noggle, who has been active with the games since 1992, relied on smiles, touch and gestures to communicate with Holger. Nonetheless, he declared it a very rewarding and enjoyable experience.
“Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.” The oath of the Special Olympics was enthusiastically celebrated by countless athletes.
Participation would garner them a ribbon, and with the choice of track and field, soccer, badminton, softball, tennis, basketball and volleyball, numerous athletes sported impressive collections of them. For the 5- to 7-year-olds, a number of non-competitive games provided fun and excitement.
