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MCLA SAAC hosts T.R.A.I.N. event

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North Adams, MA- The MCLA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) hosted their third annual Special Olympic T.R.A.I.N. (Testing Recreational Activities and Improving Nutrition) event on Sunday, March 29th in the James T. Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium. The event was headed by SAAC with the help of 30 current student-athletes.

Thirty student-athletes accompanied a total of 12 Special Olympians, with ages ranging between 4-55 years, in a two-hour fitness assessment and nutrition knowledge. The participants were tested at 14 different stations that included vertical jump, shuttle run, sit and reach, step up heart rate, and throwing for accuracy. 

Following the station testing, the Special Olympians, parents, guardians, and student-athletes were treated to a pizza party sponsored by Donovan & O'Connor, LLP. During lunch, participants were awarded certificates and were told what sports they would be best in based off their results from the fitness stations.

Vice President of SAAC, Tia Polana, has been involved with T.R.A.I.N. since the first year and her sister, Lucy, has been a participant the last two years.

"I love doing it, it's my passion," said Polana, "They are always the happiest people you'll ever meet and I love watching Lucy interact with that environment."

T.R.A.I.N. is an assessment program developed to test Special Olympics athletes’ sports skills in specific areas. The purpose of the assessment is to provide each athlete the knowledge of his or her own strengths in specific skill areas and recognition of other Special Olympic sports that he or she may excel in based on the athlete’s strengths and recommendations.