ESPN boosts Special Olympics World Winter Games Send-Offs

The Hartford Send-Off was among those that engaged more than 100 ESPN, ABC and Disney employees overall. This week, ESPN Corporate Citizenship - in partnership with Special Olympics and Bank of America - hosted six Special Olympics World Winter Games Austria Athlete Send-Offs. The Send-Offs took place at airports in London, Hartford, Seattle and at receptions in Sydney, Charlotte, and Washington, D.C., (where the entire Special Olympics USA delegation of 202 athletes, coaches and staff gathered before departing to Austria). ESPNâ€™s global coverage of the largest sporting and humanitarian event in 2017 will begin Saturday, March 18 (2-5 p.m., ET, ABC) and continue daily throughout the following week. It marks ESPNâ€™s first-ever live coverage of a World Winter Games, and ESPNâ€™s coverage will reach more than 190 countries and territories globally. This photo gallery features send-offs from just a few of the cities and nations that will be represented; more than 2,700 athletes from 107 nations will compete in the World Winter Games, which run from March 19-25. For more information on ESPN's coverage, visit ESPN MediaZone. Jacqueline Blandi contributed to this post. Sydney was home to a reception for Australia's athletes. Washington, D.C., hosted a reception for Special Olympics USA. Bank Of America provided "cheer kits" for supporters like this family in Charlotte, N.C. Seattle provided a boost from Sea-Tac Airport. A team of 15 ESPN/Disney volunteers supported the team departing London's Heathrow Airport. The Special Olympics World Winter Games Austria 2017 Flag flies above ESPN's Bristol, Conn., campus.

Washington, D.C., hosted a reception for Special Olympics USA.

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