VICTORIA, B.C. - While the summer time is a rather quiet time for varsity sports, many student-athletes still keep busy with their athletic involvement. This July, fourth-year women's field hockey player Kathleen Leahy was selected alongside a small group of UVic classmates in participating at the Doha GOALS forum, which was held in conjunction with the 2015 Special Olympics in Los Angeles, Calif.
 
The Doha GOALS forum, which stands for Gathering Of All Leaders in Sport, is an annual event created in bringing together corporations, policymakers, non-governmental organizations, federations and athletes to look at how sport can act as an agent of social change and economic progress. The student ambassadors were also able to catch a glimpse of the Special Oylmpics. 
 
"It was an amazing experience," said Leahy, also a current women's national team member. "It impacted me because it showed just how varied experiences in sport can be, and how everyone, disability or not, is capable of participating."
 
The forum consisted of four themes this year: movement for change through sport, sport as mechanism for social inclusion, the power of sport in creating bridges across the divides in society and sport as a catalyst for transformation and change.
 
Leahy and her UVic class mates got involved as student ambassadors for UVic through Dr. Vivene Temple, who does significant work with the Special Olympics and research with persons with disabilities.
 
With over 6500 athletes from 165 different countries parading inside the packed LA Memorial Coliseum for the commencement of the Special Olympics, Leahy credits it as the most memorable moment of the event. Opening acts included Avril Lavigne and Stevie Wonder while Michelle Obama gave the speech to officially open the games.
 
The group of student ambassadors also watched numerous competitions including swimming, basketball, roller-skating, power lifting, table tennis, bocce and handball.
 
"It was amazing to see the capabilities of these athletes and to see their very competitive yet sportsmanlike entertainment with each other," said Leahy. "The athletes and coaches are very inspiring people."
 
As a student-athlete studying Kinesiology, Leahy acknowlegdges that her entire university experience has been centered around physical activity and sport but this experiece still had an impact on her. 

"I was inspired by the experience and hope to have the opportunity to work further with persons with intellectual disabilities as well as continue to promote inclusion and diversity in sport."
 
With summer quickly coming to a close, Leahy and the University of Victoria Vikes women's field hockey team will prepare for the season with their annual American tour with matches against Yale, Brown and Harvard in late August. This year, the Vikes will host the 2015 CIS women's field hockey championship from Nov. 5- 8. 

For more information on the Doha GOALS forum, visit: http://www.dohagoals.com.
If you are interested in the Special Olympics, visit: http://www.specialolympics.org