The Extra Special Olympics

So, the Athens Olympics are coming up. As are the Special Olympics. And each provides opportunity for heroism and grace. And I was thinking, OK, we have these special athletes and they have their Special Olympics, and we have these state-supported athletes and they have theirs. And we have Junkyard Sports where people in wheel chairs play with people in sneakers.

And suddenly I realized that there could be maybe yet another, maybe even more special kind of Olympics - one for all kinds of athletes, together.

I haven't really thought it all out yet, but the events in this "Extra Special Olympics" would have to be designed so that the athlete gets to, as it were, control the goal - decide for themselves, the level of challenge they will face. Like taking high jumps across a slanted bar - slanted so that every player could try to jump just as high as he could, regardless of abilities. Wider, too, so that several athletes could make the attempt together.

Track events could feature wider, slanted hurdles. Swim meets could take place in a trapezoidal swimming pool. Starting lines and finish lines could be drawn diagonally.

Maybe athletes of all abilities could compete on trapezoidal fields throwing not just the discus, but anything from paper plates to sewer lids?

So I thought this: in honor of the Athens Olympics and all, how about if we play with this idea together. Yes, both of us. And work on inventing more and Extra Special Olympics events? It could be fun. It could even have implications.