Read about just a few of our incredible athlete's stories.

 
Lumene Montissol 

Lumene Montissol is so fast her teammates call her “lightning”. The Mattapan native competes in Basketball, Track and Soccer and is a member of the New England Revolution Unified team. Lumene has great determination and is always thinking of how she can be faster and develop her skills. She said what she likes most about Special Olympics is “the excitement I get during all of these seasonal sports and hanging out with my teammates and friends.” Watch Lumene's spotlight on WCVB's Someone You Should Know

 

 

 

Chris Dunn

Chris Dunn of Westford likes to meet as many people as he can, shake their hand and strike up a conversation. He competes in alpine skiing, cycling, track & field, and soccer. Special Olympics has provided him many opportunities to meet new people and try new things! He is very active and loves being outdoors. His favorite activities include golfing, fishing, biking, laser tag, bowling, and skiing.

 
Colin Davidson 

Special Olympics has changed Colin Davidson’s life in more ways than one. As a Global Messenger for over 15 years, and a competitor in basketball, soccer, athletics, golf, sailing, and skiing, he has traveled around the world including to the World Games in Greece, where he met his wife Amanda, who is also a Special Olympics athlete. Amanda and Colin have recently celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary. Colin loves watching Boston sports and spending time with friends. He was inducted into the Special Olympics Massachusetts Hall of Fame in 2006.

 

 

 
Sydney Meininger 

Sydney Meininger has been involved with the Special Olympics movement for eight years as an athlete, volunteer, Youth Activation Committee member and now a US Youth Ambassador. She graduated from Nashoba Regional High School in 2018 and is currently in the school’s transition program. Sydney plays soccer, basketball and Unified track & field. Sydney is passionate about Unified sports because it has made it possible for her to feel included at her school and in her community, regardless of her disability. Sydney hopes that being a US Youth Ambassador will give her the opportunity to bring Unified sports programming to even more students and schools.

 

Madgalena and Theresa Margelony - Mother/daughter Unified Bocce Pair 

Most people reach their 80s and decide it's time to take it slow and watch from the sidelines as their children or grandchildren compete. But, Madgalena Margelony of Shrewsbury decided 84 was the perfect age to start playing bocce with her daughter Theresa as a Unified Partner. Theresa, 59, has been a Special Olympics athlete with the Shrewsbury program for about six or seven years now, competing in basketball, bocce, and track & field. This year, her mother Madgalena decided to join in the fun, supporting her daughter from right there on the court. To top this incredible story off, in August of 2019, Madgalena became a US Citizen! Read more about their story here. 

 

 

There's so much more to learn!

These are just five stories out of the 13,327 athletes throughout the state who participate in Special Olympics Massachusetts. We hope you get the chance to meet as many of these inspiring athletes as you can and to hear more stories.
READ MORE ON OUR ATHLETES HERE.