Special Olympics South Coast Club's event at the Dunn and Lewis Centre

Competitors were buzzing with excitement and they were all ready to hit the lanes to show their ten-pin bowling talents.

A quick chat with the bowlers and you realise winning was not high on their list of priorities.

The bowlers all wanted to have fun, talk to their friends and meet more people.

Everywhere you looked around Ulladulla's Dunn and Lewis Centre on Saturday people were smiling.

Some 47 athletes from five Special Olympics Clubs took part with the South Coast Club having the highest representation.

Along with the 47 athletes there would have been at least 30 to 40 family members and volunteers.

Athletes and their families came from the Macarthur region [Campbelltown area], Sydney West [Penrith and surrounds], Illawarra, ACT and Flinders as well as the South Coast.

The South Coast club extends from Ulladulla/Milton to the Victorian border, but athletes can opt to join any Special Olympics Club.

Special Olympics [SO] South Coast coordinator Kathy Godwin said winning was not a major focus.

"One of the aims of SO is for each athlete to participate at his/her own level. Consequently, there are many divisions which allocate athletes of similar abilities to compete," she said.

She said a vast range of skills, abilities and engagement was on show.

"At this 'regional' level of competition, there are no outstanding winners - they are all winners," she said.

"That being said, ribbons are awarded in each division for those who compete.

"Outstanding results in each division are recognised: first, second, third, fourth and participation.

"I still get goosebumps when I watch our youngest athlete Zen. Zen needs a helper [which SO accommodates] and bumpers and has a 'handle ball'.

"Zen was placed second in his division. He'd never be recognised as an athlete without SO which he is."

Liz Godwin [Moruya] and Cornelius Moon [Bega] got to read out the oath after having their names pulled out of a hat.

The SO oath is "Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt".

Feedback from the participants and visiting clubs was positive.

"It's been the best day. Will you be having another comp next year? It's been worth the drive," was one comment.

"I just love how everyone gets on with each other. It's so wonderful to see the sportsmanship," another person said.

"I wish I had a blue ribbon, but I did my best," Amy F from the South Coast Club said.

Kathy said many other highlights took place during the day.

"Another fun highlight was when we asked our 'special' guests to have their own competition - they were such great sports - in the true tradition of Special Olympics - they were very brave in their attempts," she said.

"Good thing we didn't pit them against some of our bowlers.

"These guests also presented ribbons to each of our athletes who competed in the singles competition."

She went on to explain, apart from the athletes being so amazing, why the event was such a success.

"Liz Russell, an Ulladulla volunteer, was someone who needs particular acknowledgement. Our other volunteers who pitched in with anything and everything that was asked," Kathy said.

"This was the first time this committee had ventured into hosting and there's no way we could have done all the scoring and divisioning etc without their help. But again - that's what families do, don't they and Special O is a wonderful family. We had a fantastic location with incredibly accommodating staff at the Dunn and Lewis Centre."

"SO South Coast always tries to get our athletes to any competition for any sport and it was great that other clubs returned that effort," the South Coast SO coordinator said.

The support of 'special' people in the communityShe would like to thank Fiona Phillips [Federal Member for Gilmore], Dr Holland [State Member for Bega], Liza Butler [State Member for South Coast], Amber Shultz [Councillor with Eurobodalla Shire] and Mark Brantingham [CEO Yumaro Industries].

"Many of our athletes would never get a chance to 'be their best' in the open sporting community - there would be no ribbons or acknowledgement for most of our guys," Kathy said.

"There'd be a loss of that sense of achievement in 'being brave in the attempt' and each athlete works hard to achieve - at their own level."

SO South Coast has been in operation for over 30 years but COVID-19, bushfires and other issues dramatically cut numbers Australia-wide.

The South Coast club had six athletes at the beginning of 2022 and now has 27.

"The number of athletes is small compared to our Sydney SO family members, but we sure hit above our weight," Kathy said.

SO is a global sporting organisation for people with intellectual disability.

Any person aged eight years and older, who has an intellectual disability can join SO.

Go to the main website https://specialolympics.com.au/ and then search NSW South Coast.

South Coast currently trains in swimming, basketball and of course ten-pin bowling.

"We can offer many other sports, golf might be on the agenda in 2024, as long as we have the athletes and the volunteers," the South Coast Club coordinator said.

The group also has a Facebook page: Special Olympics Australia - South Coast.

"We are a volunteer-run group so costs for participants are kept as low as possible. When we train - we train for a purpose (not just to fill in time) - our athletes are being trained for the possibility of representing NSW or even our Australia," Kathy said.

"Our guys are training and competing to be Olympians."