“What sets Special Olympics apart, is that, in its heart, it’s about competition. It’s not about rolling the ball out, and having fun and high-fives—that’s a part of what we do,” Ryan Phillips says. “But we also work hard, and ultimately it's about competition.”
Ryan Phillips is the Director of Special Olympics for Franklin County, which organizes more than 500 athletes in 16 sports. Eight of these athletes, along with four volunteers, have traveled to Harrison, New Jersey to participate in a soccer match at Red Bull Arena as part of the Unified Sports exchange program. The match between the Franklin County Flyers and the team from New Jersey will kick off Saturday night, following Crew SC's clash with the New York Red Bulls.
“This is, frankly, the biggest stage,” Phillips says. “What’s so unique and special about this opportunity is our folks may never have that again, and odds are would never have the opportunity to play on a field like that, in a stadium like that, on a stage that was just vacated by two professional teams. For us to then take that same field is very cool. That’s significant.”
Phillips says the opportunity for his athletes to represent the Black & Gold in a match against the Unified squad from New Jersey is fantastic, but goes beyond wearing the kit.
“It also speaks to the value that we’ve put on to people with disabilities and the opportunities that we’re giving them now," he says. "Rewind even five, 10 years—these opportunities were not here. That’s certainly a credit to MLS, MLS WORKS, and the work you guys are doing that way, because the value of people with disabilities in our society is still not where we want it."
Phillips says the value of the match transcends whatever the score will be.
“It’s about, for many of our folks, opportunity, empowerment, value," he says. "To be able to put the same jersey on, to have everybody have the same shoes—those things may seem trivial or paled in comparison to other opportunities, but there’s really a value there that I think resonates with our folks. That, I think, is fantastic.”
The biggest challenge for the Franklin County Flyers this weekend may be the style of play. While they are used to playing five-a-side, Saturday’s match will have seven players on each side of the pitch, including four Special Olympics athletes and three Unified partners. Phillips says the partners are for the most part coaches, which improves the overall game experience in many ways.
“I think that our partners are great players in the sense that they’re very good facilitators of trying to empower our athletes to make a play with the ball,” Phillips says. “And that is the parallel in life. When you have a job that requires you to do something new, and maybe you don’t have the confidence to do something new, that you’re not comfortable with—it’s the same with sport.”
Phillips says sports can build confidence in everyday life.
“Self-esteem is not one of those characteristics that’s typically really strong in many of our folks. And so, being able to have the opportunity, to be able to have those experiences in Special Olympics, translates into their everyday lives. And that’s again, empowering.”
Special Olympics athletes are able to benefit from playing sports, not just from the physical aspects, but mentally as well.
“It shows you’re capable of more than you thought or more than others have expected from you," Phillips says. "Those are quality benefits and values that are added to peoples’ lives through the experience of sport, which myself, our coaches have had, and it’s great to be able to offer those opportunities to our athletes as well.”
One of those “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunities is this weekend in New Jersey. The team is traveling to the Statue of Liberty today before playing on the big stage representing Columbus Crew SC.
“It’s certainly the entire experience,” Phillips says. “It’s not just stepping on the field. Half of our athletes had never flown before. We had one of our guys today [Friday] say, ‘I’ve only ever stayed at one hotel in my life.’ That’s really exciting. The new experiences, the new perspectives that come from doing something you’ve never been able to do before, is fantastic.”
