A Special Weekend: Indiana Special Olympics athletes converge on Terre Haute

Jun. 11—More than 3,000 athletes from around the state came to Terre Haute for the 53th annual Special Olympics Indiana on the Indiana State University campus this weekend, but the sporting event had an unusual guest in its midst: a stand-up comic.

Matthew Hovey, who lives in a waiver home in Putnam County, was attending his first Special Olympics, where he took third place on Saturday in the standing long jump and would later compete in the 50 meter dash and softball throw.

"Summer games are amazing — I love it," he said. "I played basketball, I've played softball, I've done cornhole, and now track. My favorite is basketball." He slyly slips in one of his jokes: "Let's just say it's worth a shot." His basketball nickname is LeBrovey Hames, a mashup of his and LeBron James' monikers.

He tees up some more comedy, asking for a kind of food. Lamb is suggested.

"What do you call a lamb who knows karate?," he asks, then answers: "Lamb Chop." Mention corn on the cob, and he replied, "Sorry my jokes are a little corny."

In addition to stand-up comedy, he also manages his own art business, Hovey Art. He attends art fairs and does caricatures at parties. As a comic, he said, he was once the opening act for Morris Day and the Time.

But he also has a serious side, too.

"God bless all the athletes here today," he said. "I want to give a little piece of advice to people who struggle with their disability: Don't let your disability take away from your ability. Don't go where the path might lead — go where there's no path and leave a trail."

Stephen "The Rock" Simpson from Carmel celebrated a win by taking a different path: Upon receiving his medal for first place in bench press powerlifting, he stood behind a podium, rolled up his sleeves and dramatically and proudly flexed his muscles.

Katlin Slough of Princeton also fared well in powerlifting, receiving four medals.

"I beat my record," she said. Her favorite part of Special Olympics, she said, is "just getting the medals."

Slough has been competing for 24 years since starting at age 8. She loves hanging out with her fellow athletes.

"This is family to me," she said.

She also participates in track and softball, her favorite, where she covers second base.

"I'm the only girl on the team — I show the boys up," she said.

Amber McClain of Marion County was in the building where the powerlifting took place, but she was there to get a new pair of free eyeglasses: Volunteers were busy testing athletes' vision. (Athletes also received a free pair of shoes from Finish Line.)

Swimming is McClain's sport — she competed in the 25 yard backstroke, the 25 yard freestyle and the freestyle relay.

"I like swimming with my friends," she said, which she has done for five years. She also plays basketball. After the interview, she instinctively gave her questioner a hug.

Over at the Vigo Bowl, competitors were demonstrating their bowling prowess.

Christina McCall of Knox County had rolled a 156 on Friday. She also plays basketball, but bowling is her favorite sport.

"I can get a lot of strikes and spares," she said.

Amie Robinson from Washington also bowled, but she wasn't there solely for the competition.

"I just like coming here to hang out," she said.

Suzanne Shaner of Greencastle, participating in her second Special Olympics, bowled a 93 in her first game.

"Bowling is fun," she said.

Kathy Dent of Knox County called Shaner's score "awesome."

She said, "I love bowling because you get the 10 pins down. I love [the pins]."

Hovey, the stand-up comedian, said he had made many friends but his favorite was Jeff Mohler, President and CEO of Special Olympics Indiana since 1997.

"Jeff Mohler is absolutely amazing," Hovey said. "I appreciate all he does for the Special Olympics."

And Mohler is a big fan of ISU and Terre Haute.

"ISU is a fantastic host," he said. "I wouldn't want to do it any other place. We bring a huge crowd here.

"This is where we were born, on campus," Mohler added. "We started here and were here on campus until we moved offices to Indianapolis in 1990."

When Mohler was growing up, he competed in track and field.

"I'm 5'7" and a hundred and something pounds — about the only thing I could do when I was younger was track and field," he said with a smile. "No matter what the sport, there's something for all abilities for all our athletes. ... For some of our powerlifters, just to lift the bar itself is the accomplishment."

This year's Special Olympics unexpectedly benefited from the success of ISU's baseball team — when the Sycamores advanced to the super regional and Terre Haute was unable to host that series, it was moved to Texas. Fans of Texas Christian University — ISU's competition in the super regional — began a crusade to raise money for Special Olympics Indiana.

"That is amazing — people from miles and miles and miles away are donating to Special Olympics Indiana," Hovey marveled. "Support special needs."

"The support from college baseball fans from around the country has been extraordinary," Mohler said, adding that as thoughtful as TCU's gesture was, he's most grateful for local support.

"We've always known that the community support was there, but this situation has shown us it will always be there," he said. "That's the beautiful thing to me. The greater appreciation that I have are for the sponsors that have been with us for many decades."

The theme for the Summer Games was "Everyday Champions," inspired by the film "The Best We've Got: The Carl Erskine Story," which was screened Saturday night before a dance for the participants.{/div}{/div}

David Kronke can be reached at 812-231-4232 or at david.kronke@tribstar.com.