New London — Most of the students in Kathleen Cicchese’s class at Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School in New London had never ice skated before they first came to the ice rink at Connecticut College’s Dayton Arena.

Some were too afraid to set foot on the ice, and others clung to the walls as they carefully navigated their way around the rink. But by their third day of ice time, many were skating somewhat confidently around the rink, if not giggling when they fell.

Along with skaters from Norwich and Griswold, the students from Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School in New London were the newest members of the local Special Olympics speed skating team, preparing to compete in New London in February and in Simsbury in March.

Special Olympics programs around the world provide children and adults with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to compete in Olympic-style sports. The speed-skating program trains athletes to race in events ranging from the 25-meter straightaway to the 3,000-meter relay. The team practicing at Connecticut College is a unified speed skating team, made up of about 50 athletes with and without intellectual disabilities.

Coach Alan Hughes started a Monday morning practice by having the skaters race between lines on the rink, offering tips and encouragement along the way.

“It’s a great way to start my week,” he said.

Along with the Buzzard Amateur Hockey Association, Hughes helped start the state’s Special Olympics speed skating program in 1984, and he started a speed skating team in Hartford about 25 years ago. The sport started in New London County with him and eight athletes in 1998.

He said one of his athletes from the Hartford team moved to Norwich, so he reached out to Karen DiCrosta, one of his teachers at NFA, to ask if he could take the student out of class to practice. When she hesitated, he invited her to a practice.

“The next thing you know, she’s got a team at NFA, and now she’s her own local coordinator for all the sports,” he said.

Cicchese has been involved in Special Olympics her whole life because her parents have coached in the Groton-based teams. She said students at Bennie Dover had a unified basketball program in the past, and she brought it back to the school last year with great success. This year, her students were interested in joining the unified speed skating team.

“It helps promote inclusion in schools to have students working together on the same team who maybe don’t always have classes together,” she said as her students’ laughter echoed across the rink. “They really like it.”

For some of Cicchese’s students, putting on their skates and pads can be overwhelming because of their fear of the ice; she helped one navigate the rink with the help of a walker made of PVC pipe. Hughes said the coaches work with the athletes to make them feel comfortable and confident, especially after years of being told that ice is slippery and dangerous.

“I’ve had athletes that’ll come and not get on the ice,” he said, “but they’ll get suited up. Then what I do is I go out with them at the door, and I’ll get them to just put a foot on the ice and then come back.”

He said some athletes have taken a year to be comfortable enough to come all the way out on the ice, but he’s in no rush. The athletes also help each other on the ice and give encouragement from the bench.

In addition to the coaches, players from the Connecticut College women’s hockey team and head coach Kristin Steele help out at the Monday morning practices. Steele helped set up the athletes into groups of five for a timed lap.

“I feel like you’ve done this before,” she said to one group. “Have you been doing secret practices?”

She praised the new skaters on accomplishing so much in three half-hour sessions, and Hughes gave her and her players a lot of credit for getting the skaters that far.

“I can see [improvement] already,” he said. “If it wasn’t for them, we wouldn’t be here.”

The athletes will be competing in a speed skating invitational at Connecticut College’s Dayton Arena on Feb. 23 to prepare for the Connecticut and Massachusetts competition March 4 and 5 at the International Skating Center in Simsbury.

a.hutchinson@theday.com