Virtual 5K Launched to Benefit Special Olympics Connecticut

All are invited to sign up for the “Run Your Own Course” Virtual 5K Run and Walk presented by Webster Bank and hosted by Hawk’s Landing Country Club to benefit Special Olympics Connecticut. Participants will run or walk 5 kilometers, or roughly 3.1 miles, anytime between Wednesday June 10th and Sunday, June 14th, on a course of their choosing, in solidarity with athletes who are preparing to participate in the 2020 Special Olympics Connecticut Virtual Summer Games and officers who would traditionally support Special Olympics through the annual Law Enforcement Torch Run this time of year. To register and find out more about the virtual 5K, go to soct.org or https://localraces.com/events/southington-ct/run-the-course-2020. Questions? Email specialolympicsct@soct.org. And follow Special Olympics Connecticut on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The registration fee for the event is $30 for a runner or walker, with discounts available for current students and teams. Team registration is available to groups of ten or more signing up together. Registration for team members is $20 and for current students, $10. All participants will receive a medal in the mail.

Participants in the 5K can share their training progress and race results on social media with the hashtags #SOCT and #KeepYourDistance, referencing both the long-distance challenge and the challenges we are all currently facing during this time of social distancing.

“It [The 5K] gives everybody a goal…I’m a personal believer that everybody needs a goal, a race, a medal, to stay motivated,” said Gina LaPorte of Hawk’s Landing, one of the event’s sponsors.

“The weather’s getting nicer, and we’ve all been cooped up. They [Special Olympics Connecticut] have had to cancel so many events, we all have the chance to do something to help,” she added.

This race is a chance for supporters of the Special Olympics mission to feel good and do good, and turn 5000 meters of running or walking into something much greater.

Everyone with Special Olympics Connecticut, Webster Bank, Hawk’s Landing Country Club and the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics Connecticut thank all those who can participate in supporting the Special Olympics movement during these trying times.

About Special Olympics Connecticut

Special Olympics Connecticut provides year-round sports training and competitions for more than 13,000 athletes of all ages with intellectual disabilities and Unified Sports® partners - their teammates without disabilities.

Through the joy of sport, the Special Olympics movement transforms lives and communities throughout the state and in 172 countries around the world by promoting good health and fitness and inspiring inclusion and respect for people of all abilities, on and off the playing field. (www.soct.org)

Partner Sponsors: Adams Hometown Markets/IGA Hometown Supermarkets, Dream Ride, Enterprise, ESPN, Eversource Energy, The Frederick A. DeLuca Foundation, Law Enforcement Torch Run, NBC and Telemundo Connecticut, TD Bank, RaytheonTechnologies and WWE.

Year-Round Suppliers: Adams Hometown Markets/IGA Hometown Supermarkets, Bozzuto’s Inc., Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast, Connecticut Portable Storage/PODS, Marcus Communications, N&D Sports, Poland Spring, State of Connecticut Judicial Branch Community Service and WORX.