PARK CITY, Utah -- Eight hundred mentally retarded athletes from 16 nations gathered in Utah for the 1985 International Special Olympics Winter Games, which sponsor Sargent Shriver said Monday cuts across all political, racial, sexual and age barriers with love.
Some of the world's top athletes traveled to the historic mining town of Park City to coach the athletes, but they said they really do it for themselves.
Bruce Jenner, former Olympic decathlon gold medalist, said he gets more from the games than the athletes themselves.
'I have watched the entire program grow,' said Jenner, who said his involvement with the handicapped youngsters dates back to 1974.
'When I was living in San Jose next to the track where I worked out, at one event I heard more yelling and screaming than at any football game I've ever seen.
'I went to see what it was about and I've been hooked ever since,' said Jenner. 'I get more out of it than the kids do. It makes you put things in perspective.'
The youngsters are being coached by a star-studded array of sports celebrities, including three-time World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist Phil Mahre, the figure skating team of Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner and Alpine skiing star Stein Ericksen.
Shriver, who founded the Special Olympics with his wife Eunice Kennedy Shriver, said while race, sex and age have been barriers in what he called the 'regular Olympics in the past,' the Special Olympics 'has a way of uniting people across the world.'
He noted that not only youngsters participate in the Special Olympics, but older mentally retarded people also join in.
'It's thrilling to see someone 65 years old running the 400-yard dash and winning,' he said.
At a news conference Monday, Shriver noted that the 1985 summer games will be held in Dublin, Ireland, and officials in Ireland and Northern Ireland 'are cooperating under the Special Olympics flag.'
He said a delegation from Yugoslavia will be observing the games and that athletes from communist Poland will participate for the first time.
Special Olympians will compete in four winter sports events in the games, both in Park City and Salt Lake City. Those events include Alpine skiing,cross-country skiing, figure skating and speed skating.
Competition begins Tuesday after the opening ceremonies at the Park City resort.
Monday also was the first day of issuance for a Winter Special Olympics U.S. postage stamp and 'how exciting it is to know that almost 200 million pieces of mail will soon travel throughout the world bearing the portraits of our Special Olympics athletes,' said Eunice Shriver.
She said it is the second time the Postal Service has issued stamps honoring Special Olympians in the past five years.
