Twelve teams and more than 125 Special Olympics athletes will compete at Airport Park in Santa Monica on Saturday, Oct. 3, in the 8th Annual Westside Special Olympics Soccer Tournament.

The free, public event begins with opening ceremonies at 9 a.m. Competition runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the park's synthetic turf field. Athletes travel from across Los Angeles and Orange counties.

Santa Monica City Manager Oliver C. Chi highlighted the tournament in his weekly newsletter, calling the city's long support for Special Olympics athletes one of the hidden gems about Santa Monica. The city's Recreation Division is hosting the event.

The tournament's roots stretch back 50 years. In spring 1976, Olympic decathlon champion Rafer Johnson and Santa Monica College professor Jo Kidd partnered with the city's recreation team to launch the first Special Olympics program on the Westside. That initial effort started with weekly track and field training at SMC and a first Westside Special Olympics track meet.

Johnson won the 1960 Olympic gold medal in the decathlon and lit the cauldron at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. He led Special Olympics Southern California for decades before his death Dec. 2, 2020, at age 86. The program he helped start has run continuously for 50 years, according to Chi.

Chi also recognized Danny Price, principal community services supervisor with the Santa Monica Recreation and Arts Department, for decades of service to the Westside Special Olympics. Chi wrote that Price's efforts helped shape and grow the tournament into what it is now.

With Los Angeles preparing to host the Olympic Games again in 2028, Chi described the city's half-century commitment to Special Olympics as worth celebrating.