MEMBERS of Special Olympics Redditch had stars in their eyes last Sunday when they met global singing sensation and X-Factor judge Nicole Scherzinger.
Nicole is a global ambassador for the Special Olympics movement and was at the Lee Valley Athletics Stadium in London for a Special Olympics GB indoor meeting.
There too of course was Special Olympics Redditch (SOR) who had sent a team of 15 there to compete and the Hawaiian-born artist made a beeline for the Redditch squad.
There she instantly made friends, cosying up in particular to Richard Daykin, putting out on Instagram: “Richard is my best buddy. He gives the best hugs.”
Proud dad Ron Daykin, who together with his wife help run SOR, said: “It’s immensely important that people like Nicole are involved,” he said.
“With a profile like hers she can do so much for Special Olympics; she was the girlfriend of Lewis Hamilton, she’s on national TV, involvement is immense.”
She chatted and posed with competitors for selfies and even burst into song.
Such is the star’s profile that the paparazzi were in attendance and she featured in page spreads in national newspapers with members of SOR.
The Special Olympics movement is targeted at people with a learning disability and Nicole’s involvement stems from her having an aunt with Downs Syndrome.
SOR is a leading club in the UK for Special Olympics and takes part in regular competitions in a variety of sports.
It is always keen to recruit new volunteers to help with training, particularly football, and Ron can be contacted by emailing: [email protected] .
