More than 1,400 athletes from around the Commonwealth will go for the gold in powerlifting, swimming, track and field, softball, tennis and bowling this weekend June 8-9 during the 2012 Special Olympics Summer Games.

Summer Games competitions will be held at various locations around the region tomorrow, beginning at 9 a.m.: Softball – Glen Allen Softball Complex, 2175 Mountain Rd.; Powerlifting, track and field, wheelchair athletics, softball skills and tennis – University of Richmond; Swimming – St. Catherine’s School, 6001 Grove Ave.; and bowling – AMF Hanover Lanes, 7317 Bell Creek Rd. and Bowl America Short Pump, 4400 Pouncey Tract Rd.

New for 2012, a Young Athletes “Fun Run” will take place at 9:45 a.m. on the track at the University of Richmond. The 25M run is aimed at introducing athletes age 2-10 to Special Olympics.

Also included in Saturday's festivities will be a special presentation from Coca-Cola, a founding partner of Special Olympics, at noon at the track and field awards; the Olympic Towne Festival, featuring a variety of games, entertainment and displays for athletes and the general public; and the Healthy Athletes expo, which runs from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Athletes will again gather at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the University of Richmond’s Robins Center for the Closing Ceremony and Victory Dance.

For those unable to attend, Rising Up Sports will be live streaming the aquatics competition from 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Tune in at http://www.specialolympicsva.org/SummerGamesLive or http://www.risingupsports.com.