July 24, 2004                                                                                                          Kristen Rausch

                                                                                                                             8850 Innisbrook Run

                                                                                                                             Duluth, GA 30097

 

Dear friends and supporters,

I am writing to thank you for your sponsorship of the Three Nations Special Olympics Tennis Tournament in Vercelli Italy.  This was the first international tennis tournament for Special Olympics.  Your support allowed the ALTA Foundation to send me, 3 other athletes, and 3 coaches representing Team USA.  I was honored to be chosen to represent Georgia and the USA.

Our travel took us from Atlanta to the Milan airport; from there we went to the city of Vercelli – which is the Risotto capital of Italy.   

I competed in Singles and won a gold medal.  I also competed in Doubles with my partner Tina Riley – we also won a gold medal.  Finally, I competed in mixed doubles with my partner Santino Monroe and we won a fourth place in a very intense competition; each nation made teams of their best players.  Team USA had 2 mixed doubles teams winning a second and fourth place.

Our hosts, the City of Vercelli, the Vercelli Tennis Club, and Special Olympics Italy provided a great competition.  We competed for four days – including divisioning, three days of matches, and awards.  The first night there was a parade with opening ceremonies in the cathedral in the center of the village.  The second night they hosted a banquet with all of the Athletes, coaches, sponsors and family.  The third night we were taken on a guided tour of Vercelli and then to a pizza party at a local restaurant.

Team USA took second place in the overall competition bringing home a magnificent team trophy now on display at the ALTA office.  All of the athletes received an assortment of risotto and souvenirs to take home.  After the awards on the fourth day, we took a train to Milan and stayed in a small hotel near the train station.  That night we took a tour of Milan. 

On the fifth day, we had to get up early to catch the bus to the Milan airport and then take the long flight back to Atlanta. 

Again, thank you for your support for this program.  The ALTA foundation has made Special Olympics tennis a lot of fun and provided the opportunity for us to compete with other Special Olympians from around the world.