Special Olympics Northern California
Off-Season Sports Training Program Policies and Procedures

The following applies to Special Olympics Northern California (SONorCal) sports teams seeking to continue sports training during the off season of a Special Olympics sport:

1. Areas may offer an off-season sports training program only if the area participates in that sport’s regular Special Olympics sport season during the calendar year. The off-season training must be supplemental to, and not a substitute for, regular season training.
2. All applicants MUST turn in: completed application, check (if fees will be incurred), facility agreement, and training roster (athletes, coaches and unified partners) during the registration period (see number 4) for that season.
3. All funds needed to provide an off-season sports training program, including any applicable facility rental fees (but excluding insurance costs), must be raised by the team/program providing the off-season training.
   • All expenses (facility fees) must be paid in FULL with the application during the registration period (see number 4) for that season.
   • If funds are not paid in full, training will not take place and monies will be given to SONorCal as a donation to the program.
4. Teams must train outside of the regular season and must submit the Off-Season Application to SONorCal at least four weeks prior to the desired off-season start date. Below are the current SONorCal regular sports seasons and off-season training windows.

Sports Season	Regular Season	Off-Season Training Window
Spring	April – June	July – March
Summer	July – September	September – June
Fall	September – December	January – August
Winter (For Following Year)	January – March	April – December

5. All expenses and revenue will be passed through SONorCal and not administered locally.
6. Areas will receive Special Olympics insurance coverage for approved off-season sports training, as applicable.
7. Team rosters, listing all athletes, unified partners and coaches must be submitted during the registration period (see number 4) for that season.  No Application will be approved unless accompanied by a complete team roster. Additional athletes cannot be added to the roster after the roster has been submitted.
8. Head Coaches/Area Directors/Team Managers MUST confirm that all volunteers and athletes on the team roster have a current and complete Special Olympics application on file.
9. Volunteers are responsible for recruiting volunteers and securing facilities.
10. Off-season sports training will not be included in counties’ training calendars.
11. Each off-season sports training MUST be pre-approved by appropriate Special Olympics staff. Submission of a completed application form MUST be turned in during the registration periods (see number 4).  Please see office contacts at meet our staff.

Click here for the Off-Season Sports Training Application.