Jeff Hardwick, right, takes the athlete oath with Melissa Bonifas Ness during the Special Olympics UP Regional Basketball Tournament on Saturday. (Photo courtesy of Becky Carey)

ESCANABA — The Special Olympics UP Regional Basketball Tournament was held in the gym of the Escanaba Junior/Senior High School on Saturday, March 7. The event has been sponsored by the Escanaba Kiwanis for over 40 years, and this year was another great success, organizers reported.

Prior to the tournament, Escanaba Mayor Mark Ammel encouraged the public to attend. “If you never experienced that, get thee up there and witness true sportsmanship,” he said at the conclusion of a city council meeting last week. “You’ll leave smiling.”

The event saw 14 teams — an increase from last year’s 11 — from around the Upper Peninsula gather to compete in six different divisions of basketball. Those teams were made up of 133 athletes and 44 coaches and chaperones from Marquette, Menominee, Escanaba, Iron Mountain, Norway, Ironwood and the Keweenaw.

Six teams came from Area 1 — the host region, which includes Schoolcraft, Menominee and Delta Counties — with five participating from Escanaba and one from Menominee. All local teams medaled in their division.

During the event, athletes could also participate in some “Healthy Athlete” programming provided by Special Olympics Michigan. Athletes got their hearing tested and got the chance to get a brand new pair of tennis shoes fitted by a professional at no cost.

Hunter Smith, followed by George Dunlap, carries the torch at the Special Olympics UP Regional Basketball Tournament in the Escanaba High School gym this weekend. (Photo courtesy of Becky Carey)

“It was a fantastic day for everyone and I really appreciate all the volunteers who come together to make this happen every year,” said Area 1 Director Becky Carey. “The athletes really look forward to this event and they were not disappointed!”

Special Olympics Michigan (SOMI) holds more than 700 local and regional competitions each year in addition to seven state-level competitions and four district basketball tournaments.

Anyone in the tri-county area interested in joining or volunteering for Special Olympics is encouraged to call Becky at 630-3338, email area01@somi.org or check out the Facebook page of Special Olympics Michigan Area 1. For other regions in the state and to find out more about the organization, information is available at somi.org.

Next up for the local athletes is swimming and athletics, which includes track-and-field events.

Tom Dunlap shoots as Mike Henderson looks on. (Photo courtesy of Becky Carey)