Rubber ducks by the thousands splashed into the Chicago River for the annual Chicago Ducky Derby, a fundraiser for Special Olympics Illinois. A deluge of 90,000 rubber ducks poured out of a truck on the Columbus Drive bridge and plunged into the river, then floated for around 15 minutes before a winner and runner-up were plucked from the water.

Special Olympics Illinois

Special Olympics Illinois organizes competitions across the state for people with disabilities and special needs. The event has raised more than $480,000. It costs $10 to sponsor a ‘lone duck,’ which will feed an athlete lunch at a competition, and $30 for a ‘quack pack’ of six ducks, which supplies gold medals for a team.

Becky Cavanagh, the Ducky Derby ambassador and a 13-year Special Olympics athlete, held up the winning duck to the cheers of crowds packed on both sides of the river. Cavanagh said her favorite part about the Special Olympics was ‘making new friends.’ The sponsor of the fastest duck wins an SUV, and the runner-up will win $2,500 in cash, said Pete Beale-DelVecchio, president of Special Olympics Illinois.

Original reporting: KOAT Albuquerque — read the source article.