The Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board, the Limestone District School Board and Kingston Police welcomed over 120 high school athletes at Loyalist Collegiate and Vocational Institute for the first local school soccer qualifier of the year.  Athletes with and without intellectual disabilities are competing on an equal playing field in hopes of advancing to the 2020 Special Olympics Ontario School Championships, June 2-4 hosted by Kingston Police Service.

Chief Antje McNeely, Honorary Chair of the 2020 Special Olympics Ontario School Championships, expressed the utmost pride for Kingston Police to be hosting the Games and welcoming over 1,000 student athletes, their coaches and families to Kingston in June.

The Games will feature five sports: basketball, bocce, floor hockey, track and field and soccer. All five will offer two types of team divisions: a traditional division, where athletes on the team have an intellectual disability, and, a unified division, where athletes with and without an intellectual disability will have the opportunity to compete on the same team. All sports will be broken down into multiple ability divisions, where athletes will have the chance to compete against those similar to their ability level.