The Special Olympics Queenstown Lakes club will officially launch its training programme for young Wakatipu people with intellectual disabilities on Wednesday, March 16.
The programme of 10-pin bowling training will begin in Strike Bowl, in Arthurs Pt.
It was one of the outcomes of a meeting of four club committee members and Special Olympics New Zealand lower South Island regional sports co-ordinator Jan Aitken, of Dunedin, in the Disabilities Resource Centre last week.
Mrs Aitken said the meeting was "really positive" and mapped out the new club's direction.
Families wanted structure from the club and would get it, she said.
"We offer training programmes every week for 10 weeks. We're looking at 10-pin bowling, aquatics, snowsports, football and equestrian, if there's any interest."
An hour-long athletics training session was held with 10 to 15 young people on the Remarkables Primary School field last week.
The session involved siblings and families of the youngsters and a positive outcome was the networking between parents who might not have met before, she said.
The 10-pin bowling programme would run for five weeks from the launch date, because it would be halfway through the term.
However, it had the potential to become a year-round programme, because it was not dependent on the weather.
Mrs Aitken said she appealed for more event volunteers, coaches and those with knowledge of committees to email her at: jana@specialolympics.org.nzOrganisers hope Queenstown Lakes Club athletes will compete in the Special Olympics New Zealand National Summer Games, in Dunedin, in 2013.
The 13th Special Olympics World Summer Games will take place in Greece this year, beginning on June 25.
