Jamaica’s top young footballers alongside Jamaica Special Olympics players got the chance of a lifetime to participate in training sessions hosted by coaches from English Premier League Champions, Chelsea FC at the recently-held Digicel Kickstart Clinics.

The Jamaica Special Olympics junior football team joined aspiring young footballers from parishes across Jamaica who came out to showcase their talents and train under the Chelsea FC coaches. Senior International Football Development Officer for the Chelsea FC Foundation and Digicel Kickstart Clinics Head Coach, David Monk, was pleased with all of the boys’ performances describing them as agile and hardworking on the field. He said; “There was a high level of performance as is to be expected at the Jamaica Clinics, however we were especially pleased to see that the Special Olympics athletes also came out and put on a show.”

The Jamaica Special Olympics junior football team had a training session with the coaches on the final day of the Clinics. Monk said; “I was so excited to work with the Jamaica Special Olympics junior football team as they came out to learn and enjoy themselves. The boys were energetic and played like a team. We even had the Executive Director for the Jamaica Special Olympics, Lorna Bell, participating in the training. We love having the Special Olympics athletes participating in the Digicel Kickstart Clinics and look forward to working with them in the near future.”

Executive Director for Special Olympics Jamaica, Lorna Bell, said; “The players enjoyed participating in the Clinics training session with the Chelsea Coaches and were happy to be out on the field practicing and improving their skills. What touched me was the fact that the coaches were considerate of the players’ challenges, explaining the activities in a way that the boys could easily relate and learn. Digicel has always supported the Jamaica Special Olympics teams and we were delighted for this opportunity ahead of the upcoming World Games in July.”