Area athletes excited to compete in Special Olympics Canada Winter Games
There was a big send-off Monday afternoon as area athletes boarded a plane at the London International Airport to compete in the 2024 National Special Olympics Winter Games in Calgary.
Derek Spence with Special Olympics Ontario said it’s the first time the games have been held since 2020.
“It’s been a long time coming for these athletes, they’ve been working hard,” said Spence.
Many of the athletes are looking forward to competing and bringing home medals.
“I’m really excited,” said Sara Albers, a speed skater from London. “I’m going to be representing my country as well as my province and everybody is believing in me.”
Figure skater Breanna Williams of Windsor is confident in her abilities, but admitted she has some butterflies.
“A little bit, not too much,” said Williams. “Sometimes my hearts races and my hands shake but a lot of family are cheering me on.”
In all, there are 64 team members leaving from the London area and a total of 346 from Ontario.
The games start on Tuesday and will continue until March 2.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'oesn't get' the global phenomenom.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
Tornadoes collapse buildings and level homes in Nebraska and Iowa
Tornadoes wreaked havoc Friday in the Midwest, causing a building to collapse with dozens of people inside and destroying and damaging hundreds of homes, many around Omaha, Neb.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
It's 30 years since apartheid ended. South Africa's celebrations are set against growing discontent
South Africa marked 30 years since the end of apartheid and the birth of its democracy with a ceremony in the capital Saturday that included a 21-gun salute and the waving of the nation's multicolored flag.
Britney Spears settles long-running legal dispute with estranged father, finally bringing ultimate end to conservatorship
Britney Spears has reached a settlement with her estranged father more than two years after the court-ordered termination of a conservatorship that had given him control of her life, their attorneys said.
opinion RFK Jr.'s presidential candidacy and its potential threat to Biden and Trump
Although it's still unclear how much damage Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s candidacy can do to either Joe Biden or Donald Trump this election, Washington political columnist Eric Ham says what is clear is both sides recognize the potential threat.