Meet the Plymouth athlete who will competing in the Special Olympic World Games

After being selected for the Great Britain Team, local athlete Steven Dodd is all set to compete in the Special Olympics World Games next week.

Steven will be competing in Powerlifting – a sport of strength and technique. First established at the Special Olympics World Games in 1983, Powerlifting includes both Traditional and Unified events.

Although this is his first time competing in Powerlifting for the first time internationally, this is not his first Special Olympics. Steven attended the 2015 World Games where he won two silver medals in Kayaking.

The Special Olympics World Games will be hosted in Abu Dhabi this year, this is is the first time in over 50 years that the games have been held in Middle East North Africa since the movement’s founding.  The games will officially start on March 14th and continue until March 21st. 

Steven Dodd preparing to compete in Powerlifting for the first time in Abu Dhabi

The competition will see 7,500 athletes from 190+ countries participate in 24 Olympic Sports. Steven is the only athlete from Plymouth attending the event, with two other competitors from the UK doing the same sport.

Special Olympics is the world’s largest humanitarian sporting event and a global movement which focuses on the empowerment of People of Determination with intellectual disabilities through the power of sport.

Steven will be travelling to London on the first leg of his journey tomorrow morning (Thursday 7th March) and is welcoming anyone to see him off at the Plymouth Train Station before his train departs at 6:16am. 

For more information about the Special Olympics World Games, visit their website here: www.abudhabi2019.org/