Jo Dee Messina To Lend A Hand At The Team USA Special Olympics Training Camp

Nashville, TN. (Top40 Charts/ Curb Records) - Country superstar Jo Dee Messina, who has been an ambassador for the Special Olympics for about three years, jumped at the chance to help prepare the athletes for the 2007 Special Olympic World Summer Games in Shanghai, China during the Team USA Training Camp at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.
Jo Dee will kick off the training camp July 12th with a concert for the 580 athletes, coaches, and volunteers involved with the training camp. Three days later Jo Dee along with her band and crew will take part in the Special Olympics All-Star Softball Game at Hawkins Field against some of the Special Olympic athletes. Following the game Jo Dee will be a model in a fashion show presenting the clothing the athletes will be seen wearing throughout their trip to Shanghai.

"I became an ambassador for the Special Olympics after seeing the games," said Jo Dee. "These are athletes that always put their heart into sports. To see the games is to see true sportsmanship in its purist form. Doing their best is what these athletes strive for - plain and simple. I'm proud to work with the Special Olympics"

The Team USA Training Camp starts the 100 day countdown before Team USA athletes and coaches travel to the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai, China this October. Athletes and coaches participate in team building activities, as well as learn about Chinese culture. Featured events for the camp include the Unified Softball game hosted by Jo Dee, Team USA Spokesperson. Jo Dee will also host a "Night in Shanghai" which presents Chinese language and culture to the Team USA delegation through food, clothing and decor. The week will be topped off with a luncheon and uniform-unveiling fashion show presenting the clothing the athletes will be seen wearing throughout their trip to Shanghai.

The Special Olympics World Summer Games is the largest international sporting event to happen in 2007 bringing together nearly 7,500 athletes from 165 countries with support from tens of thousands of volunteers, family members and spectators, and offers a world stage to showcase the Special Olympics movement on a new level, celebrating the abilities and accomplishments of people with intellectual disabilities and fostering a new global vision of acceptance.