Meet Athletes Amy Nelson and Amanda Manzardo
Throughout their years as Special Olympics BC athletes, SOBC – Coquitlam soccer players Amy Nelson and Amanda Manzardo have been learning new life skills and growing as people.
"I never actually played soccer before I joined Special Olympics, so it was a really good experience. It helps me grow as a person, not just only in Special Olympics, but outside of Special Olympics too," says Nelson.
Nelson and Manzardo have been named to Special Olympics BC's first women’s soccer team that is going to the national stage. They join the Special Olympics Team BC 2026 Training Squad in preparing for the 2026 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games in Medicine Hat, Alberta!
\Manzardo said that Special Olympics has helped her make new friends.
"Special Olympics has helped me become more confident. I've got more friends and am just having fun," says Manzardo.
Her father, Randy Manzardo, is thrilled she has learned many new skills on and off the fields of play.
She learned so many different skills through that, whether it be public speaking, all kinds of things that we never expected.
Equipped with confidence and skills developed through Special Olympics and sports, Manzardo made it all the way to compete in soccer at the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai, China. She also represented Canada in track and field at the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Los Angeles.
Manzardo returned to the world stage along with Nelson as members of Special Olympics Team Canada 2023, where both played for Canada’s first-ever women’s soccer team at the 2023 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Berlin.
Nelson and Manzardo are valued in their communities that recognize their skills and achievements. Nelson was recognized with a Port Coquitlam Sport Award for Achievement in 2025. Manzardo is a longtime valued employee at the Metro Vancouver Transit Police as Office Clerk.
Nelson and Manzardo have now become close friends, speaking for hours a week outside of Special Olympics.
“It’s a true friendship. We talk on the phone almost an hour a day, almost a couple days a week,” Manzardo says.
Get Involved
Learn how to get involved with Special Olympics and find life-changing friendships and skills like Nelson and Manzardo.
Article by James Ngo, BCIT Online & Broadcast Journalism