Karen has been a member of Special Olympics for over 20 years. She regularly competes and trains in aquatics, bocce and softball but Bocce is her favourite sport and she let out a big cheer when she was told of her selection in the NSW Bocce Team for the Special Olympics XI National Games in Adelaide.

Karen represented Australia in Bocce in 2007 at the Special Olympics World Games in Shanghai finishing first in the team event, third in the pairs and fourth in the singles.

Karen has been playing Bocce with Sydney Northern for over five years. Coach Beth Seach describes Karen as a strategic player with a poker face.

If you would like to help Karen on her journey to the National Games you can make a donation by downloading the Athlete Supporters Form and mail it to Special Olympics Sydney Northern PO Box 486 Collaroy Beach NSW 2097.

Beth Hull is our most accomplished Rhythmic Gymnast. Fondly referred to as ‘pocket rocket’ by her fellow athletes this young woman continually strives for excellence in all her disciplines.

Beth trains a minimum of 5 hours per week, and takes every opportunity to compete in Special Olympics and mainstream competitions. She has represented Australia at the Asia Pacific Games in Chtistchurch New Zealand and at the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai in 2007 where she won a swag of medals.

Beth also trains regularly in other Special Olympics sports such as Tennis, Basketball, Bocce and Ten Pin Bowling. Apart from gymnastics Beth’s other great passion is Dancing which she also excels in.

If you would like to help Beth on her journey to the National Games you can make a donation by downloading the Athlete Supporters Form and mail it to Special Olympics Sydney Northern PO Box 486 Collaroy Beach NSW 2097.

2009 is a very important year for Anders. He is really excited about turning 16 on November 17 and he is looking forward to the challenges that representing his state in golf brings.

The Special Olympics golf program began its association with Long Reef Golf Club in 2004. Anders has been an active member of the SO Golf Program for its duration. You will find him on the course every Wednesday afternoon training and every Saturday morning competing with the club’s Junior Development Program.

In February this year Anders won the gold medal in his division at the State Golf competition on the Central Coast.  As a result of his regional and state successes, Anders was selected to represent NSW in golf at the Special Olympics IX National Games in Adelaide from 19-24 April 2010.

If you would like to help Anders on his journey to the National Games you can make a donation by downloading the Athlete Supporters Form and mail it to Special Olympics Sydney Northern PO Box 486 Collaroy Beach NSW 2097.

Gabrielle Clark has been a member of Special Olympics for over 20 years. She has represented NSW in gymnastics, basketball,  aquatics, and golf.

Gabrielle has been selected in the NSW Golf Team for the Special Olympics XI National Games and as the only female on the team she is very keen to see more ladies participating in golf..

Gabrielle is part of the Sydney Northern Golf Program at Long Reef Golf Club. She trains every week and is always looking for more opportunities to play golf locally. You can find Gabrielle on any given day practicing her chip shots on North Narrabeen beach and she uses her nanna’s lawn as her very own putting green.

Gabrielle has represented Australia in Golf at the Special Olympics Asia Pacific Games as well as the last National Games on the Gold Coast in 2006.

If you would like to help Gabrielle on her journey to the National Games you can make a donation by completing the Athlete Supporters Form

Michelle Savage is over the moon with her selection on the NSW Aquatics Team. She only started getting serious about swimming 12 months ago and swam in her first State competition in February this year achieving personal best times in all her events.

Athletes train in the Special Olympics Aquatics program all year round. In summer the venue is Pittwater House School and winter training is held at the Warringah Aquatics Centre.

Michelle is determined to do well at the National Games and has signed herself up for extra training at the Aquatic Centre. This means getting up at 5am in the morning and spending a couple of hours in the pool swimming laps before she heads off to work at Pittwater RSL.

If you would like to help Michelle on her journey to the National Games you can make a donation by downloading the Athlete Supporters Form and mail it to Special Olympics Sydney Northern PO Box 486 Collaroy Beach NSW 2097.

Kieran has just celebrated his 21^st birthday and what a celebration it was. Turning 21 and being selected to represent New South Wales in Basketball at the Special Olympics IX National Games in Adelaide from 19-24 April 2010 sealed 2009 as a very important year for Kieran.

The Special Olympics Basketball program began over 15 years ago. Kieran has been part of this program for the past six years. He is the Power Forward on the team, he is a bit bigger and stronger than the other players and able to use his size to full advantage for defence and rebounding. Although Kieran’s primary job on the team is not to score baskets he has been known to score a few 3 pointers in a match. He is unselfish with the ball and always the first to congratulate his fellow team mates and opposition when they score.

Kieran’s selection on the NSW C Grade Basketball Team is well deserved. He is a consistent team player, and a great role model who loves the sport of basketball.

If you would like to help Kieran on his journey to the National Games you can make a donation by downloading the Athlete Supporters Form and mail it to Special Olympics Sydney Northern PO Box 486 Collaroy Beach NSW 2097.

Kathy has been a member of Special Olympics Sydney Northern for a period of 18 years. She regularly competes and trains in several Special Olympics sports however Bocce is her number one sport.

Kathy last represented NSW in Bocce in 2007 at the Special Olympic X National Games on the Gold Coast where she finished in fourth place.

Her selection in the Special Olympics XI National Games in Adelaide has motivated Kathy to hone her Bocce skills in preparation for the competition in singles, pairs and teams and to hopefully bring home a medal. Kathy plays Bocce with precision using concentration and self-control to outplay her opponents.

If you would like to help Kathy on her journey to the National Games you can make a donation by downloading the Athlete Supporters form and mail it to Special Olympics Sydney Northern PO Box 486 Collaroy Beach NSW 2097.

Garth has represented Special Olympics New South Wales at National Games in Basketball, Track & Field and Floor Hockey and he has also represented Special Olympics Australia in Basketball. 

Garth is over 6’5’ tall and is fondly referred to as “Big Bird” by all Special Olympics athletes and volunteers.

 As an athlete in his early 40’s Garth still competes in Aquatics, Tennis and Ten Pin Bowling and although he has retired from playing Basketball he still remains actively involved in the sport as a Coach.

Under the guidance of his mentor Lorraine Clark, Garth has taken over the responsibility of coaching the junior and developmental players at Sydney Northern Region. He has helped the athletes learn the skills required to play basketball, develop fitness and team work and most importantly instilled in all his athletes the importance of good sportsmanship. The teams success at the recent State Games (Gold Medal –Challenge B Division), can be directly attributed to the impact Garth has had on the athletes as a Coach and a role model.

Special Olympics Sydney Northern Region is extremely proud of Garth and the contribution he has made to Special Olympics he is a very valued member of our region.

On October 11 and 12 2008 Garth successfully completed the Special Olympics Australia Athlete Leadership Program. For the first time in his 22 years as a Special Olympics Athlete he spoke in a public forum to a group of his peers about his time in Special Olympics and the many friends he has made.