Let’s set the scene. It’s Christmas Eve and you’re living your life, perhaps getting ready to celebrate the holiday. Suddenly, you get a call from your local Special Olympics program that there has been a last-minute drop on the Special Olympics USA (SO USA) Unified floorball team heading to Torino, Italy in a few months, all leading to a big question: would you like to be a part of the team?
For some, this call would be too much - too much of an ask, under too little time, resulting in them deciding to stay home.
But for others, the call of adventure would be too enticing. That was the case for Leigh Howard, Unified partner for the SO USA Unified floorball team, the Knights. Howard works for Special Olympics New York (SONY) as a Director of Unified Champion Schools but hadn't been part of the official team preparations for World Games.
“Once it was explained what the opportunity entailed, not only to play in World Games, but to do so with a group of athletes and coaches - it was such an honor, so I said ‘yes,’” Howard recalled.
Special Olympics Unified floorball is a fast-paced team sport, similar to floor hockey, which brings together individuals with and without intellectual disabilities to compete side-by-side, promoting inclusion and camaraderie.
“The team had been training for over a year when I joined in mid-January,” Howard recounted. “They had been together in other sports for years and coming on to the team was intimidating. But the athletes were especially welcoming to me and helped me learn the sport better. They were so patient on teaching me the skills they had honed over the years.”
The team and their new recruit got to work in early January. Howard didn’t hesitate to make the commitment, driving all the way down to team practices, joining scrimmage games, and competing at State Games in Rochester, NY. Howard was new to the sport, but her eagerness to do well was evident and her new teammates were more than happy to help teach her the ropes.
"The bond within the team was undeniable, and from the start, it was clear that Leigh [Howard] belonged with us," said Nancy Bellini, Unified floorball coach.
After just two short months of training and an 8-hour flight across the Atlantic, it was game time. The team was ready to embrace the challenges ahead, win or lose, together.
However, this “us versus the world” mentality didn't pan out as originally expected. More specifically, it didn’t really take off at all. From day one, the team started to bond with other delegations, making connections they didn't expect. Suddenly, they were practicing with SO Malaysia and SO Korea, sharing strategies and techniques with SO Finland and SO Germany, and establishing a friendly rivalry with SO Italy.
“One of the things you know going into an experience like this is that you're going to bond with your teammates better,” Howard shared. “One thing that's taken us by surprise is how we bonded with other delegations who were competing. Along the way, we've really grown close, trading training tops and Instagram accounts, sharing locker rooms, and following each other’s progress, cheering each other on.”
This is something commonly experienced at a Special Olympics event - the breakdown of “us versus them” mindset to one focused on the larger community. While competition (and a gold medal) is still the goal, the community that is created is also equally important. Case in point, during the medal round of competition, SO USA faced off against SO Italy, the literal hometown heroes. Having lost their first two games that round, SO USA was determined to deliver a positive result. But in the first half they struggled to gain ground and before they knew it, they were down two goals to the home team. However, they persisted, and a powerful second half saw them fight to a 3-2 win! The cheers of the team and crowd were electric when the final buzzer rang through the arena. And while SO Italy may not have been cheering for SO USA, they were quick to celebrate a great game, shaking hands and continuing the friendly banter that had been there before the game. They all were winning, no matter the score. This was a trend throughout the floorball delegations, from all over the world.
After a week of competition, SO USA found themselves standing on the awards podium, bronze medals around their necks. But if you ask the team, what they experienced was pure gold. Camaraderie. Friendship. And a sample of what true inclusion can look like.
“Getting our bronze medal was great but also was sharing our pride as SO USA with the other floorball teams we got to meet - it has been amazing. It paints the picture of why we were here and what [Special Olympics] is all about,” said Jessie Espinet, Unified partner.
Louis Brusco Jost, Unified floorball athlete, echoed that notion. Jost continued, “Winning the medal is not what matters here, but how hard you try. The experience was awesome.”
In a world that can sometimes feel more and more isolated, the SO USA Unified floorball team encapsulated the vision, power, and scope of what sports can do - transform the world through connection. By challenging comfort zones, forming new relationships, and sharing in the joy of what it means to be human.
We are reminded of the common saying to “grab life by the horns” in the spirit of actively manifesting the world you want to see. While this saying is American in origin, it seems fitting for these games, as Torino translates to English as “little bull”. Looking at the larger picture, it’s hard not to think that these delegations were doing just that - taking the world for a few short days and showing us all a way forward to what’s possible – a world where inclusion is a full contact sport, both on and off the court, no matter the country of origin.
Leigh Howard’s choice to answer that unexpected call on Christmas Eve wasn’t just a leap into a game—it was a leap into something much bigger. Another chance to witness the transformative power of inclusion at the world stage, to stand side by side with athletes and partners from around the globe, and to prove that the real victories in life are those that bring us together, not just on the scoreboard, but in our hearts.
And in the end, it’s not about the medals we win, but the relationships we build. And with that, we can truly say: this team, this experience, and this spirit of inclusion, are the real gold medals.