Telecommunications giant Digicel Samoa Company has announced its continued support of Special Olympics Samoa (SO Samoa) with the presentation of a $40,000 cheque.

The C.E.O. of Digicel Samoa, Mark Witthuhn, presented a $40,000 cheque to the SO Samoa National Director, Unasa Elizabeth Ah Poe, and her management. 

“Special Olympics Samoa has always been close to our heart and we’ve seen it grow from strength to strength each year as it makes invaluable contributions to the lives of athletes and their families that goes well beyond sports," Mr. Witthuhn said.

"We’re extremely proud of the work that the team is doing to give visibility to people with intellectual disabilities.

"At Digicel, we promote an inclusive society and most importantly stand by to develop and provide opportunities for people to realise their potential and strive together for excellence and appreciation of all different abilities.”

The Special Olympics’ global mission is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with disabilities, giving them continued opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community. 

Unasa said they will always be grateful to Digicel for its continued support and the aim of the Special Olympics is to give everyone a chance.

“We’ve witnessed the power of the Special Olympics model. Everyone has a gift and everyone deserves the chance to be included, celebrated and accepted,” she said. "We are, as always, extremely grateful to Digicel for its continuous support not only financially but emotionally too - they believe in us, in the athletes and in the movement, they have always been there from the beginning.”

This is a dream that has and will continue to be realised for athletes in Samoa. Last year 18 athletes traveled to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates to compete in the Special Olympics World Games. 

The Samoan contingent returned with eight medals, having competed against 190 other countries. As the countdown begins to the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin, Germany 2023, this continued partnership is a much welcomed reassurance of support to the team. Digicel Group is a total communications and entertainment provider with operations in 31 markets throughout the Caribbean, Central America and Asia Pacific. 

Digicel also runs a host of community-based initiatives across its markets, including Digicel Foundations in Haiti, Jamaica, Papua New Guinea and Trinidad and Tobago which focus on educational, cultural and social development programs.