Called the South County Comets, the team is looking for members and volunteers in Tonganoxie, Basehor, Linwood, Lansing and other area communities.

Marty McDowell, who is helping put the new team together, said Special Olympics athletes who live in this area typically have to join teams from other counties. That will no longer be the case with the inception of the South County Comets.

Potential athletes must be at least 8 years old and identified by an agency or professional as having one of the following conditions: intellectual disabilities, cognitive delays as measured by formal assessment or significant learning or vocational problems due to cognitive delay that require or have required specially-designed instruction.

Those interested in joining the new team or volunteering can contact McDowell by emailing her at martha.mcdowell@usd453.org.

Special Olympics is a year-round program of sports training, education and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.