Special Olympics Has Mill Valley Police Officers On The Run Today

Mill Valley Police Sergeant Lindsay Haynes and Corporal Ian Maddison are are on the move Thursday for a 18-mile run from the Marin County Civic Center to the Golden Gate Bridge as part of the annual Torch Run to benefit the Special Olympics.

Officers and athletes are carrying the torch for the Special Olympics Summer Games, which begin June 22 at UC Davis.

The relay starts at 8 a.m. and is scheduled to take runners from the MarinCivic Center, past the San Rafael Police Department, over Wolfe Grade, down to Bon Air and onto Magnolia, before turning onto Doherty Drive and past the new Twin Cities Police headquarters. The run eventually descends into Mill Valley and then on toward the Golden Gate Bridge, where the torch will be handed to members of the San Francisco Police Department.

The Law Enforcement Torch Run is a major fundraiser for the Northern California Special Olympics. It has raised more than $6 million dollars since its inception in 1998.

Overall, more than 1,000 members of the Northern California Law Enforcement community and Special Olympics Northern California athletes will participate in the two-week torch run, which started June 8.

More than 900 athletes and volunteer coaches from all over Northern California will join the competition at UC Davis. After weeks of training and participating in qualifying competitions, athletes will compete in aquatics, bocce, tennis or track and field.