Special Olympics competitors arriving in Southern California were greeted by a logistics mess that forced many to sleep on a gymnasium floor before they were finally shuttled to their host cities. At least 1,500 athletes and coaches spent the night at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles after flights and buses arrived late on Tuesday, said Rich Perelman, a Special Olympics spokesman. The Red Cross provided blankets and water. By midday Wednesday, the athletes were on their way to their host cities.
The university is serving as a staging area from which more than 7,000 athletes and thousands more coaches and delegates are being routed to host cities, from San Diego to San Luis Obispo, where they will be housed until the opening ceremony on Saturday.