The send-off is open to the media, sponsors, family members and supporters. Various members of the Provincial Government will be in attendance to provide support for the team, including the Honourable Kevin O�Brien, Minister of Government Services; the Honourable Dianne Whelan, Minister of Transportation and Works; and Mount Pearl North MHA Steve Kent.

The 2008 Provincial Team is composed of 24 athletes, six coaches and five mission staff who will be competing in the sports of cross-country skiing, figure skating, floor hockey, and snowshoeing. The team size of 35 is up exponentially since the last Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in 2004, to which Newfoundland and Labrador sent a team of seven members.

The 2008 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games are taking place February 26 to March 1 in Quebec City. These national games will bring together more than 800 athletes, coaches and mission staff from 10 provinces and two territories, competing in seven different sports. From these games, Team Canada will be selected to compete in the 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games, to be held next February in Boise, Idaho.

Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador is dedicated to enriching, through sport, the lives of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians with an intellectual disability.  It is a provincial not-for-profit grassroots organization that provides sport training and competition opportunities for over 450 athletes of all ages and abilities. There are currently 12 community-based clubs that offer sport programs. Through sport, the Special Olympics program offers athletes and families a sense of achievement and an opportunity to excel as they take on leadership roles within their community

For more information about the upcoming send-off and Special Olympics Canada Winter Games please contact Executive Director, Johnny Byrne.