The spirit of the Special Olympics is captured best by its official Athlete's Oath: "Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt."

This is a powerful message for any athlete, but it has special meaning for those whose intellectual disabilities do not prevent them from training and competing in these games. Each of these athletes serves as inspiration to us all, and sends a clear message that anything can be accomplished when you have the determination, and the heart.

Hawai'i should be proud of its 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games delegation, whose eight athletes not only competed at the event in Shanghai, China, but came home with 19 medals — nine of which were gold.

Leading the winning pack was Leanne Ngai, 27, of Honolulu, who won four gold medals, in the bench press, deadlift, squat and powerlift combination events.

Other winning athletes included: Kealakekua's Ray Donager, 40, who won three gold medals; Sean Hively, 28, of Waimanalo; Natalie Miyahira, 25 of Kane'ohe; Nicole Kelley, 32, of 'Ewa Beach; Zachary Mar, 17, of Honolulu; Jennifer Wong of Kane'ohe; and Solray Duncan, 29, of Pearl City.

They were among 7,000 from 160 countries around the world who participated in the games, which included 23 different sports.

Special Olympics began in 1962 when Eunice Kennedy Shriver ran it as a day camp at her private Maryland estate. Since then, it has become a "global movement dedicated to empowering individuals with intellectual disabilities to become physically fit, productive and respected members of society through sports training and competition."

Indeed, they are all those — and so much more.

Correction: Leanne Ngai won four gold medals at the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai, China, earlier this month. Her name was misspelled in a previous version of this story.