By Allyson Russell
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The 2006 National H'Olympics, an annual athletic competition for abused, neglected and troubled children, will begin Monday at Carnegie Mellon University.

Dubbed H'Olympics, for Home + Olympics, the games are sponsored by the National Fellowship of Child Care Executives, and this year are being hosted by the Auberle group home in McKeesport. Participants will include children from 11 agencies in Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maine.

The H'Olympics began in 1990 with a boys basketball tournament, said Ralph Wagley, coordinator of this year's event. The games have since grown to include track and field, volleyball, soccer, softball and swimming.

In all, 300 children, 36 from Allegheny County, will compete for individual and team medals. They range in age from 11 to 17 and include boys and girls who are at-risk and living in residential homes.

The event was established to help children with similar backgrounds come together by interacting with one another through sports. When the children are not participating in the games, they will get together for social events, which during their week in Pittsburgh will include dinner on the Gateway Clipper, a day at Kennywood Park and the June 14 Pirates game.

The event is being held on Carnegie Mellon's campus as it was in 2000. The participants will be provided with room and board and will have access to the university's athletic facilities, said Mr. Wagley, who is therapeutic recreation coordinator at Auberle.

The 2006 National H'Olympics will open with a ceremony Monday from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the PNC Park pavilion and continue through June 16.