Note that event results and complete photo galleries are found on the 2006 Special Olympics USA National Games Web site. Photo, right: a Special Olympics athlete surges through the Beyer Hall Pool, the home of the Iowa State University women's swimming and diving team. Aquatics was one of the events contested at the very first Special Olympics International Games, held in Chicago, Illinois, USA in 1968, and it remains a popular sport. Because of the wide array of swimming events offered, aquatics is appropriate for a range of ages and ability levels. Photo, right: Kevin Cretchen of Special Olympics Louisiana (left, #161) and Kyle Rogers of Special Olympics Illinois battle it out on the track at Ames High School. Both athletes competed in the Pentathlon, an athletics offering that consists of five challenging events: 100 Meter Run, 400 Meter Run, Long jump, High Jump and Shot Put. Rogers finished second for a silver medal and Cretchen fourth in their division. Athletics is the most popular Special Olympics sport, with 889,538 athletes (as of the 2005 Athlete Participation Report) participating worldwide. Photo, left: Michael Todd Smith of Special Olympics North Carolina takes a shot during basketball competition. North Carolina is well known for its basketball fervor, and Smith and his teammates did not disappoint, coming home to their state with a silver medal for their efforts. Special Olympics basketball offers Team Competition in Half-Court Basketball (3-on-3 Competition), Unified Sports Team Competition, Unified Sports Half-Court Competition (3-on-3) and offers events to provide meaningful competition for athletes with lower ability levels: Individual Skills Contest, Speed Dribble, Team Skills Basketball, and Unified Sports® Individual Skills Competition. Photo, right: bocce competition at Iowa State University's Lied Recreation Center, a multi-dimensional indoor facility that houses a 300-meter track, 20 basketball courts, a 60' x 50' artificial turf infield as well as other state-of-the art facilities and exercise equipment. While one of Special Olympics' newer sports, having been introduced at the World Games level for the first time in 1995, bocce is becoming increasingly popular with Special Olympics athletes of all ages. Athletes can compete in Singles (one player per team), Doubles (two players per team), Team Competition (four players per team), Unified Sports Bocce Doubles (two players per team), and Unified Sports Bocce Team (four players per team). Photo, right: the 52 lanes at the AMF Lanes in Des Moines, Iowa were a hub of activity during the bowling competition at the 2006 Special Olympics USA National Games. As of the 2005 Athlete Participation Report, 200,572 Special Olympics athletes worldwide compete in bowling, one of the fastest growing Special Olympics sports. Most athletes compete under the same rules and circumstances as athletes on a professional tour, although there are some modifications made for athletes with physical disabilities. Photo, right: the Iowa State Athletic Soccer Fields, home to Iowa State Cyclones, were a hub of activity with multiple Special Olympics football (soccer) matches contested through the week. With the FIFA World Cup being contested during the same time frame, interest was high. Football is one of the most popular sports for Special Olympics athletes, who are able to improve their overall physical fitness through training and competition. Photo, right: a Special Olympics athlete keeps her eye on the ball as she competes in golf at the USA National Games. Ames Golf & Country Club (18 hole course, 5,485-6,530 yardage, Men's par 71 / Women's par 73) and Coldwater Golf Links (18 hole course — links style, 5,057-6,800 yardage, par 71) were the two venues hosting Special Olympics golf competition. The Special Olympics Golf program is centered on two educational phases designed to encompass all skill levels: learning to swing a golf club and learning to play the game. Special Olympics golf includes five levels of competition including Unified Sports, a program that combines Special Olympics athletes and athletes without intellectual disabilities (partners) on sports teams for training and competition. In Unified Sports golf, a team would include one Special Olympics athlete and one partner who are of similar ability. Photo, left, courtesy of Special Olympics New York: Christine J. Ellwanger of Special Olympics New York is a blur as she competes on the uneven bars. Ellwanger finished fourth in the All-Around competition in her division, and competed individually in balance beam (winning a silver medal), floor exercise (bronze), uneven bars and vault (silver). Photo, right: a scene from the Motor Activities Training Program (MATP) events at the USA National Games. MATP provides a training curriculum that emphasizes training and participation rather than competition for persons with severe limitations who do not yet possess the physical and/or behavioral skills necessary to participate in official Special Olympics sports. When MATP participants reach the necessary readiness and skill levels, every Special Olympics sport provides an appropriate transition into that sport at an introductory level. Photo, left: Shawn Michael Herron of Special Olympics Minnesota on his way to the silver medal in powerlifting. Each of the powerlifting events — bench press; deadlift; squat; combination, bench and deadlift; and combination, bench, deadlift and squat — took place in Stephens Auditorium on Iowa State University's campus. Stephens Auditorium is an award-winning performing arts theater and thus the location was ideal for spectators, family members, other athletes and volunteers to observe competition on the performance stage. Photo, right: coach Steve Claypool talks with one of his Special Olympics Missouri softball team members at the River Valley Softball Complex in Ames Iowa. Special Olympics coaches play a unique and indispensable volunteer role in Special Olympics around the world: they give Special Olympics athletes the most immediate awareness of their own worth, ability, courage and capacity to grow and improve. Photo, right: a Special Olympics athlete on the court at the 2006 Special Olympics USA National Games. Individual skills contest, singles, doubles (male, female, mixed, and Unified) were all contested at the eight hard-surfaced Forker Tennis Courts located on the campus of Iowa State University. Like mainstream tennis, Special Olympics Tennis gives athletes the opportunity to learn and perform a variety of skills that can be played throughout life. Tennis became an official Special Olympics sport in 1987. Photo, right: action during the volleyball competition. The venue was the Forker Building on Iowa State University's campus, which boasts a large gymnasium with a 22' ceiling height that houses six volleyball courts. Eighteen states sent teams, male and female, to compete. More than 70 volunteers staffed the venue, part of the more than 8,000 volunteers from across the country that helped make the 2006 USA National Games such a success. Simply put, volunteers do it all. As a global organization that operates on a grass-roots level, Special Olympics can be successful only with the dedicated and able assistance of its more than 700,000 volunteers around the world. There is no charge to athletes for participation in Special Olympics, and volunteers make that possible. To volunteer your own skills, please contact your local Program. To locate the Special Olympics Program nearest you, use our Program Locator.