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Teenagers from Belcourt and Devils Lake barreled down the court at the Minot State University Dome.

"Dribble it!" shouted a parent from the sidelines.

The Special Olympics North Dakota state basketball tournament was well under way Friday at the Dome. The tournament continues today. Events are being held at the Dome, Bishop Ryan High School, Longfellow Elementary, Erik Ramstad Middle School and Roosevelt Elementary and are free and open to the public.

On Friday afternoon, one player went down in a tangle of arms and legs, seeking the basketball, but scrambled back to his feet and raced after his teammates to the other side of the court, where one player was blocking the basketball player with arms held high.

The ball soared over the heads of the other players, circled the rim and whooshed through the basket.

The sideline audience cheered.

The game between the boys and girls on the team, all of them playing in a division for players under age 21, was going on alongside two other games on the court at the Minot State University Dome, but none of the players broke concentration.

Forty teams from Belcourt, Bismarck, Devils Lake, Dickinson, Fargo, Grand Forks, Harvey, Jamestown, Mandan, Minot, and Valley City are playing today in the 2009 Special Olympics North Dakota State Basketball Tournament.

Kelly Rotar, Grand Forks, who organized the tournament for Special Olympics North Dakota said members of the teams had to undergo 10 weeks of training. Coaches separated them into divisions based on their ability in such skills as passing, shooting, dribbling, and playing with a team. Participants in the basketball tournament have to have an intellectual disability and meet other criteria. The youngest player at the state tournament is 10, but children as young as 8 can play on Special Olympics teams, said Rotar. There isn't an upper age limit.

There are 15 different types of sports that are offered by Special Olympics North Dakota throughout the year.