Our Sports

Sports are a powerful force. They work towards shifting the focus from disability to ability, and from isolation to involvement.

Special Olympics Montana offers year-round training and competition in 18 Olympic-type sports for individuals with intellectual disabilities. State-level competition is available to anyone ages 8 and older (SOMT does offer additional programming for those younger than 8), and events are designed to serve all-ability levels. The fundamental difference that sets Special Olympics competitions apart from those of other sports organizations is that athletes are grouped together by age, gender and ability level to ensure all participants experience a truly competitive experience. Every athlete is recognized for his or her performance and encouraged to achieve their personal best.

In addition to traditional competition, Special Olympics Montana also offers unified events within many sports. Unified Sports bring together athletes with and without intellectual disabilities- people of similar age and athletic ability – who train and compete on the same teams. Sports that offer unified competition will be denoted with a (U), below.

Games and Competitions

The State Summer Games are Special Olympics Montana’s, and one of the state of Montana’s largest sporting events. It has occurred every year since the program’s inception in 1970. The State Summer Games feature nearly 1,000 competitors who will participate in 7 Olympic-type sports and the Motor Activities Training Program. Read More

The State Basketball Tournament (U) is held each fall and showcases the talents of more than 600 competitors from over 40 Montana delegations. There are five different events for competitors to experience competition in– 5v5 Traditional Team Play, 5v5 Unified Team Play, 3v3 Half-Court Team Play, Individual Skills, and Modified Individual Skills. Read More

The Bowling Championships (U) are regional competitions offered in communities around the state, in February. These events offered a full-day of competition in the following events– Traditional Singles, Traditional Singles Ramp- Unassisted, Traditional Singles Ramp- Assisted, Traditional Doubles, Unified Doubles, Traditional Team, and Unified Team. Read More

The Area Winter Games are held each winter and feature 4 Olympic-type winter sports. Big Sky, Charles Russell, Glacier and Five Valleys currently offer Area Winter Games, with at least one of the following sports.

  • Alpine Skiing (U)
  • Cross-Country Skiing (U)
  • Snowboarding (U)
  • Snowshoeing (U)

The Area Spring Games are held seasonally preceding the State Summer Games, and feature sports from the State Summer Games offerings listed above. The Five Valleys, Yellowstone Valley, Big Sky, Glacier, Charles Russell, Central Montana, Tri-County, Southwestern, and Northeasters Areas currently offering spring games.

Upcoming Events

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