Clint ISD planned all school year long to host its annual Special Olympics in late March but due to the coronavirus pandemic, their original plans were abruptly canceled. As students started with their online classes and committing to virtual education, staff members, athletes and parents felt the need to honor the annual event in some form.

Athletes, parents and Dario Arroyo of Clint ISD joined together to assemble a virtual Special Olympics for elementary kids all the way through high school students. The schools that had representatives join in on the virtual event included Clint High School, Mountain View High, Clint Junior High, W.D. Surratt Elementary, Ricardo Estrada Middle, Frank Macias Elementary, Horizon High, Horizon Middle, Desert Hills Elementary, East Montana Middle and Montana Vista Elementary.

The events for the first-ever virtual Special Olympics included running events (100-meter and 50-meter runs), field events and wheelchair races. The in-person Special Olympics usually feature running events, field events and relay races. Parents and siblings recorded the representatives of each school and submitted them to be a part of the event.

Upon the conclusion of the Special Olympics, all participants received a medal and certificate of completion.

"All parents were super happy and thrilled about the idea," Arroyo, who is a special education P.E. coach of Clint ISD told 600 ESPN El Paso. "Students were sad because they look forward to it each year. We came up with this idea and thought, 'let's see how it goes.' Parents and everyone were really happy about it."

Joaquin Moreno edited the video, while Josephine Angerstein Guzman, the director of the special education department, worked with Arroyo to make this happen for the athletes.

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