Land O' Lakes High School

When Vicky King took her coaching job at Land O’ Lakes High School in the mid-1980s, it came with the duty of coaching athletes with special needs.

She embraced the role.

As time went on, she found herself becoming more and more involved.

Her dedication — along with the efforts of the athletes she coaches — led to the selection of the Land O’ Lakes unified soccer team to represent Team U.S.A. at the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles, which yielded a bronze medal when the team defeated China, 2-1.

The team competed in a division that has seven athletes on each side of the ball. It is a unified team, which pairs athletes with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team. Special Olympics athletes play alongside partners, who are there to provide support and help.

While members of the Land O’ Lakes came home clutching bronze medals, King, herself was in the spotlight on Sept. 26 when she was named the Florida Special Olympics Coach of the Year during a gala at Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando.

Sherry Wheelock, president and CEO of Special Olympics Florida, said King was singled out for the award because of her passion for athletes, both with and without disabilities.

“She’s been a driving force for the success of Special Olympics Florida unified sports in Pasco County, but she’s also provided and trained more than 50 other Special Olympics soccer coaches throughout the state,” Wheelock said.

“She’s also been responsible for introducing new schools to this unified competition format,” she added.

King also coaches a traditional team at her school.

She treats all athletes the same, Wheelock said. “She has high expectations for all of the athletes to perform at their top level.”

Lisa Eckel, whose daughter, Haley plays on King’s team, is delighted about King’s recognition.

“I think it’s a well-deserved honor. It couldn’t have been awarded to anyone better,” Eckel said.

“She (King) spends lots of time and effort with all of the kids in the community and in the school, and she just brings out the best in all of them,” Eckel said.

“My daughter (a partner on the team) has been super fortunate to have these past three years with her (King), on and off, the soccer field.

Eckel traveled with her husband, her other daughter and her sister-in-law out to L.A., to attend the opening ceremonies and to watch the games.

“It was amazing. You can equate it to what we watch on TV for the Olympics,” Eckel said.

She was impressed by the camaraderie she witnessed between the teams from different countries, and was excited to hear the roar of cheers and applause for Team U.S.A. when the athletes walked out, she said.

The Land O’ Lakes team took part in an event that featured athletes from 170 nations competing for international medals. The games included 21 Olympic-style sports.

Getting to those games took a year of preparation and fundraising, with King playing a pivotal role in both.

“It was definitely a year of a lot of training, fundraising, spreading the word about Special Olympics, those kinds of things,” she said.

“We raised about $42,000,” King said. “It was hard work.”

But, it was rewarding in more ways than one, she said.

“We met new people through the fundraising,” she said. “The community really stepped up and helped us.”

When the team left for the games, there was a big send-off at Land O’ Lakes High.

“The day that we left was a year to the day that we actually found out that we were going,” King said.

“We trained all year. During the summer, we trained three days a week for two hours, from the end of school until we left in July.

“They (team members) spent practically the whole summer together. They got closer and closer the more that we were together. The bonds became stronger,” King said.

The experiences were equally enriching for both the Special Olympics athletes and their unified partners, King said.

“They both did things they never have experienced before,” she said.

“For everyone, it was being away from home for two complete weeks and living with people you hadn’t lived with,” she said.

They also were living on a schedule beyond their control.

They would rise at 4 a.m., have breakfast at 5 a.m. and board buses at assigned times. They also had to make scheduled appearances, King said.

It was busy, but exciting, too.

The team and three coaches went to Disney Studios and rode through Hollywood and Beverly Hills.

They went to a four-day training camp in Riverside before arriving in L.A., and while in Riverside, they marched in a parade, King said.

The players were treated like celebrities.

People who didn’t know them, wanted to pose for photos with them, King said. They wanted to meet the athletes that were representing Team U.S.A.

“Young kids wanted balls signed, shirts signed,” King said.

Being part of the World Games and winning the bronze medal were exciting experiences, King said.

But, she added: “The biggest reward was to see the accomplishments of the athletes, have them gain confidence in themselves, self-esteem, being able to travel, meet other people, make lifelong friendships,” she said.

No doubt the World Games were a highlight in King’s coaching experience, but she also enjoys the day-to-day work that she does.

She said she coaches to win, but also teaches other things along the way, such as sportsmanship, fair play and rules of the game.

Published November 11, 2015