Representatives of Iowa State and the city of Ames will be in Washington Wednesday to lobby Iowa representatives and senators for assistance in funding the first-ever National Special Olympics, to be held in Ames in 2006.

The games, organized jointly by the university and the city, have a $9 million budget, said Rich Fellingham, executive director of Special Olympics Iowa. The lobbying group, which includes Fellingham, Ames Mayor Ted Tedesco and Stanley Johnson, vice provost of ISU Cooperative Extension, will meet with Rep. Tom Latham, R-Iowa, and Sens. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, to seek $3 million in federal assistance to ease the financial burdens on the city and university.

The lobbying group believes it has a good chance of securing the funding because of the wide benefit of the games, Johnson said.

“This money is not just for Iowa — it will help athletes and officials from all over the country to be part of the Special Olympics,” he said.

Organizers are sifting through several ideas to publicize the games, Weeks said. One of Tedesco’s ideas is to bring the syndicated game show “Wheel of Fortune” to Stephens Auditorium the week of the games, with all contestants’ winnings going to Special Olympics. Apparel design students could design dresses for letter-turner Vanna White to wear, which could later be auctioned to benefit Special Olympics.

The idea has not been presented to game show executives yet, but Tedesco was confident the arrangements could be made.

“If ‘Wheel of Fortune’ doesn’t want to come, we’ll get ‘Jeopardy’ instead,” Tedesco said.

The $9 million event budget includes the costs of housing, transportation and food for athletes, as well as costs for opening ceremonies and use of facilities, said Julie Weeks, executive director of University Conference Services and the Ames Convention and Visitors Bureau. The two organizations are collaborating to coordinate the National Special Olympics.

The 2006 games will be the first national Special Olympics organized in the United States, Weeks said. The event is expected to draw 4,000 athletes and 1,000 officials from all 50 states.

An additional 10,000 to 15,000 spectators will come to Ames for the events, she said. The games will offer 12 or 14 events at both university and city venues, including aquatics, track and field, basketball, powerlifting and gymnastics.

Iowa State and Ames were selected by the National Special Olympics last July, partially because of the success of Iowa’s state Special Olympics, Tedesco said.

Other factors in bringing the games to Ames were its central location in the country and existing facilities to play host to events, Fellingham said.

The city has much to gain financially from the six-day event, Fellingham said.

“Bringing [10,000] to 15,000 people into the community for six days will have a great economic impact,” he said.

It is too early to predict the exact dollar amount the games would bring to the city, he said.

In addition to the economic effects, the event is a great opportunity to showcase Ames and Iowa to the rest of the country, Johnson said.

“This is a chance to show the world and nation that Iowa can put on a great event,” Tedesco said.

“We can set the mold for the National Special Olympics in the U.S.”