The Special Olympic volleyball teams arrive in Agrate Brianza

Next month Special Olympics will stop in Agrate. Competitions valid for 18 and 19 May will be held in the gyms of Agrate regional volleyball games. The event was organized by Volleyball Agrate, which it has also had among its ranks for several years the Special Team team capable of winning the title of Italian champion twice, the last one in 2022.

The Special Olympics and the enthusiasm of Volley Agrate

The presentation press conference was held on Thursday 18 April in the primary school gym in via Battisti: «Since 2018 we have had the special team with us that participates in the Special Olympics events – explained the president of Volley Agrate, Tiziano Caldararo -. This year there was the possibility of being able to host the regional games here and we are happy to have been able to take advantage of this opportunity. It will be a great commitment from an organizational point of view. We turned to the municipal administration who gave us their support. We hope to organize it in the best possible way.” Andrea Colombo, coach of the Agratese Special team illustrated what the program of the two days will be: «Special Olympics is a global organization which, through specific training and programs, allows people with intellectual disabilities to carry out sporting activities. It was an opportunity for us and we wanted to seize it. Thanks to the municipality of Agrate and Fipav who will support us – has explained -. In total, 8 teams from Lombardy will participate. The qualifying races will be held between Saturday and Sunday morning and then the finals in the afternoon. On Saturday evening there will also be the opening ceremony with the lighting of the Olympic brazier”.

The Special Olympics and the satisfaction of the Municipality

The Councilor for Education and Sport was present for the administration Claudio Galli and the first citizen Simone Sironi: «It’s an opportunity that we wanted to seize immediately – the words of the councilor -. It didn’t seem real to us that we could host such a beautiful and inclusive event. As an administration we have made the structures available and have managed to make a contribution towards the expenses that will have to be borne. Our community manages to put in a lot of energy, volunteers and hours of work and we are happy about this. We hope to experience a weekend of passion, fun and volleyball.” «We are honored to be able to host such an event in our municipality – added Sironi -. We wanted to support Agrate volleyball right from the start because for us it is not only an important sporting event but also a moment to convey values, such as inclusion, that our community should have in its blood. We thank Volley Agrate and all those who will work for these two days.” Also present at the presentation was Massimo Sala from Agrate, president of Fipav Milan, Monza and Lecco: «The Special Olympics are not part of the Federation but I believe that sport, regardless of who organizes it, is a vehicle of important values. Inclusion, aggregation, but also education and community. We as a territorial committee address basic activities, the invisible and most important one that brings girls and boys to the gym and supports families and schools in their growth. We will give our contribution both as a presence and by making the referees available during the event. I thank the company for the work it does in the area.”