Bradford's special athletes are celebrating as they inch towards the half-way mark of their £22,000 Olympic appeal.

A 31-strong squad of sportsmen and women are in training for the National Special Olympic games in Glasgow next July.

And so far the team, the biggest in the country, has raised almost £9,000 to help them realise their dreams.

Bradford Sport and Recreation Association for People with Disabilities (BSRAPD) kicked off its appeal in June.

And since then the cash has been pouring in with a total of more than £4,000 from Bradford Council's recreation department and the district's five area committees. BSRAPD chairman Pauline Montgomery said they were delighted with how much was raised so far, but there was still a long way to go.

"There are lots of events coming up and more money will be coming in," she said.

"We hope to meet our target by March next year but if we could do it by New Year that would be excellent for us and a great way to start 2005.

"We are coming up to the season of goodwill and it would be wonderful if people could support us by doing something special and asking people to make donations instead of presents and cards so we could try to hit our target by January.

"We would like to thank Bradford Council and the area committees for their substantial donations."

She also thanked the special athletes who also raised funds themselves through various sponsored sporting events.

"This shows commitment by the athletes, their parents and carers and they deserve to do well," said Mrs Montgomery.

The rest of the cash has been raised through various events held by organisations across the district and a £450 donation from Bradford North NHS.

Last year the team won 16 medals at the Special Olympics in Dublin.

Next year's games run from July 1 to 9 and include a variety of heats.

Money raised will pay for training and fees.

If any individual, organisation or company wants to donate time or money or sponsor an individual athlete, contact Rob Cooper or Barry Thorne at BSRAPD on (01274) 437093 or e-mail: amin@bradforddisabiltysports.org.uk