BELTON, Texas (KXXV) — Lake Belton High School recently hosted its annual Special Olympics Night of Champions, bringing together athletes from Belton and Lake Belton alongside disabled students for an evening of family, fun, and basketball.
The event aimed to promote inclusion and highlight the true value of sports.
Belton High's head girls' basketball coach, Anne Zulhof, emphasized the importance of all-ability sports.
"We always talk about all-ability sports, so I think this is a really great opportunity to step away from competition and remember why we do sports. It’s about community," Zulhof said.
Coach Zulhof, who has a sister with a disability, hopes that her athletes benefit from the on-court interactions just as much as the participants do.
One of those athletes, Belton freshman forward Kadence, shared her experience.
"Some kids were kind of shy at first, so I went up, said hi, and asked them if they wanted to shoot around," she said.
"It was really nice to hang out, and kind of teach them what we do, and just seeing them really happy getting to play our sport makes me happy too."
Mackenzie Moore, a student at Belton High, was one of the many happy campers at the event.
Her mother, Elizabeth Moore, expressed her gratitude for the supportive environment at Belton ISD.
"This community in Belton is so inclusive, and they’ve been that way — she’s a senior, so they’ve been that way since she was three years old at Belton ISD," Moore said.
"Including her, not just as this girl I go to school with, but that’s my friend.'
The Night of Champions event serves as a reminder of the positive impact sports and community can have on everyone's lives — it’s a celebration of inclusion, support, and the joy of playing together.
