St. James Swift’s Football for All forms new Special Olympics club

St. James Swift’s Football For All have established their new football club, Special Olympics, which will start in the 2022-23 season.

The St. James Swift FFA Team, which operates as a football club for players with physical, sensory and/or intellectual disabilities, currently competes in the IFA competitions and will participate in the Special Olympics program this year.

St. Founded five years ago with just five players, James Swifts now has 35 athletes playing for the FFA team between the ages of thirteen and thirty-seven, eighteen of whom have qualified for the Special Olympics program.

Speaking at the launch of the new club, Special Olympics Regional Director Shaun Cassidy said: “Clubs are the heart of Special Olympics and the most important part of our organisation. The work our coaches and backroom team do for our athletes and their families , is primarily for a good cause.

“We are very pleased that St. James Swift’s FFA is joining the Special Olympics program this year, which provides athletes with great opportunities in their area as well as the opportunity to compete in regional and national competitions.”

Because both player development and character development are priorities at Special Olympics, St. James Swift’s FFA athletes able to contribute to the club outside of the game, such as becoming junior coaches, fundraising and organizing events, giving them the opportunity to develop skills they can use off the field.

Special Olympics Ireland provides additional opportunities for athletes to develop and demonstrate their leadership skills through the Athlete Leadership Programme. This program will be available for St. James Swifts players and will provide both personal and professional development and act as athlete representatives and health ambassadors throughout the organization.

St James Swifts FFA Head Coach Darren Coyle added: “The 35 incredible athletes we have in the FFA are vital to our football club and we are delighted to now be able to host those who qualify for the Special Olympics programme.

“Being part of a community is so important for everyone in society, especially people with intellectual disabilities, so it’s fantastic to see so many from all over Belfast, Newtownabbey and even Coleraine come to our training every week, their Develop skills and grow strong friendships.”

St James Swifts FFA entered the junior league for the first time this season and are looking forward to defending the tournament they won in Blackpool last May. The club wants to play in Spain in 2024.

St James Swifts athletes, now part of the Special Olympics Ireland programme, will have access to additional playing opportunities at Special Olympics competitive games, as well as the opportunity to progress through the four-year competition progression cycle within regional, regional and national competitions to progress.

Special Olympics is a sports organization for people with intellectual disabilities from 4 years old with no age limit. It has thousands of athletes from across the island of Ireland competing in 15 different sports in over 250 active clubs.

Through its athletics, health and leadership programs, athletes learn to be physically, mentally and emotionally fit. They learn new skills, build confidence, and most importantly, experience the joy of sport and make lifelong friendships.

All St James Swifts teams train on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 6pm to 8pm at the Coláiste Feirste, Falls Road Belfast. The junior team (11 – 14 years) and beginners (lower level 15+) train at 18:00. The advanced team (intermediate to higher level 15+) practices at 7:00 p.m.

New athletes are welcome to come train with the St James Swifts FFA.

Please contact Darren Coyle directly on 07704010363 or via St James Swifts FFA on Facebook.

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