UW-Madison student group Badgers for Special Olympics organized a basketball tournament at the SERF last Saturday for athletes with intellectual disabilities.
The tournament featured more than 20 teams with roughly 80 people volunteering at the event. Teams were competing for a chance to qualify for a statewide competition happening later in the year.
Badgers for Special Olympics is a relatively new organization that has grown from five members to more than 150 members in only four semesters, according to a university release.
President of Badgers for Special Olympics Ben Kerzner said he hopes the recent tournament will help the UW-Madison community recognize the value of people with intellectual disabilities.
“I think a lot of people count individuals with intellectual disabilities out in their ability to interact, to think, to process, to live in mainstream society,” Kerzner said in the release. “Through our club, that’s really what we’re trying to show our members: that these people are amazing, they contribute so much, and they’re smart and they’re funny and they’re athletic, and they’re no different than anyone else.”