Special Olympics North Carolina offers training and competition in 20 Olympic-type sports. See the sports here. Local program sport offerings vary based on athlete interest, coaches and facility availability. To find out what sports are offered by this program, contact the local program coordinator.

Learn more here!

Committee Meeting
Every second Thursday of the month
7 – 8 p.m. at Gaston County Sheriff’s Department

Movie Night
Friday, July 29
6 p.m. at First United Methodist Church
See more!

Fall Sports Sign-Up Night
Wednesday, August 10
5 – 6 p.m. at First United Methodist Church
See more!

2022 Jonathan Henley Athlete of the Year Award Presentation
Sunday, October 30
1:30 p.m. at George Pappas Liberty Lanes
See more!
Interested in nominating an athlete for this award? Learn how here.

Are you interested in having a Special Olympics athlete at your event or meeting? There are two Athlete Leadership roles that you can request!

Global Messengers

Global Messengers are Special Olympics athletes who have been trained in public speaking to serve as ambassadors for the organization.  They can recruit potential athletes, volunteers and sponsors through public presentations.

Athlete Ambassadors

Athlete Ambassadors are representatives for Special Olympics North Carolina at functions that often have businesses or individuals that have donated money, food, etc. to Special Olympics NC and this is a way to thank them. Ambassadors are able to say thank you and show our appreciation while at events.

To schedule a Global Messenger or Athlete Ambassador appearance, please contact the local coordinator.

Since athletes never pay a fee to participate in Special Olympics, donations and sponsorships allow our program to purchase seasonal sport equipment, pay facility rental fees, purchase uniforms, and pay for travel (hotels, competition registration fees, etc.). See the 2022-23 Sponsorship Form.

Contact us if you are interested in being a sponsor of our program.  We would love your support!

Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools bring youth with and without intellectual disabilities together through sports and education to create school communities of acceptance and respect. Unified Champion Schools are seen through every level of education (Pre-K/Head Start through college) and are driven by youth and staff leaders.

Get your school involved as a Unified Champion School!

• 2022 Jonathan Henley Athlete of the Year Award Nomination Form
• June 26 Newsletter
• SONC Golf Tour Newsletter
• Coach Outreach Newsletter