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Special Olympics New York State Summer Games kick off today in Ithaca

More than 1,100 athletes and coaches are competing this weekend, including more than 40 athletes from Western New York.

ITHACA, N.Y. — More than 1,100 Special Olympics athletes and coaches are descending upon Ithaca this weekend for the annual State Summer Games — their largest statewide competition of the year.

Forty-three athletes from Western New York will compete in basketball, bowling, swimming, and track. Other competitions this weekend include powerlifting, tennis, and volleyball.

Special Olympics athletes train for eight weeks and compete at the regional level to qualify for the State Games.

Opening ceremonies are Friday night, and sporting events run through Saturday.

Organizers say participation celebrates unity, acceptance, empowerment, dignity, pride, and fun.

According to the Special Olympics website, Eunice Kennedy Shriver founded Special Olympics in 1968, and Dorothy Buehring Phillips inaugurated the program in New York one year later.

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