Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports movement for people with intellectual disabilities and multiple disabilities . It is officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee and is the only organization allowed to use the term "Olympics" worldwide. The aim of Special Olympics is to help people with intellectual disabilities through sport to gain more recognition, self-confidence and, ultimately, more participation in society.
The Special Olympics movement was founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy-Shriver , a sister of US President John F. Kennedy . The background was her sister Rosemary Kennedy's disability after a lobotomy.
Special Olympics is represented today with 5.2 million athletes in 174 countries.
The sporting highlight at Special Olympics are the World Games, which are held every two years (alternating between summer and winter games). On November 13, 2018, the Special Olympics World Games 2023 were awarded to Germany / Berlin by the Presidium of Special Olympics International (SOI). Around 7,000 athletes and unified partners from 170 nations are expected to take part in 25 sports at the Special Olympics World Games 2023 . You will be accompanied by more than 3,000 carers and 12,000 family members. The organizer of the World Games in Berlin is SOI, the host is SOD together with the State of Berlin.
Special Olympics sports
Official Sports of the Special Olympics
Recognized sports of the Special Olympics
Special Olympics World Games
Summer games
| Games | year | place | approximate number of participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 1968 |
 Chicago , IL |
1000 |
| 2. | 1970 |
Chicago, IL |
2000 |
| 3. | 1972 |
Los Angeles , CA |
2500 |
| 4th | 1975 |
Mount Pleasant , MI |
3200 |
| 5. | 1979 |
Brockport , NY |
3500 |
| 6th | 1983 |
Baton Rouge , LA |
4000 |
| 7th | 1987 |
South Bend , IN |
4700 |
| 8th. | 1991 |
Minneapolis - St. Paul , MN |
6000 |
| 9. | 1995 |
New Haven , CT |
7000 |
| 10. | 1999 |
Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill , NC |
7000 |
| 11. | 2003 |
 Dublin
|
6500 |
| 12. | 2007 |
 Shanghai
|
7450 |
| 13. | 2011 |
 Athens
|
7000 |
| 14th | 2015 |
Los Angeles , CA |
6500 |
| 15th | 2019 |
 Abu Dhabi
|
7000 |
| 16. | 2023 |  Berlin |
Winter games
| Games | year | place | approximate number of participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 1977 |
Steamboat Springs , CO |
500 |
| 2. | 1981 |
Stowe , VT |
600 |
| 3. | 1985 |
Park City , UT |
720 |
| 4th | 1989 |
Reno , NV / South Lake Tahoe , CA (USA) |
1000 |
| 5. | 1993 |
 Salzburg / Schladming
|
1600 |
| 6th | 1997 |
 Toronto / Collingwood
|
2000 |
| 7th | 2001 |
Anchorage , AK |
1834 |
| 8th. | 2005 |
 Nagano
|
1800 |
| 9. | 2009 |
Boise , ID |
3000 |
| 10. | 2013 |
 Pyeongchang
|
n / A |
| 11. | 2017 |
Graz / Schladming / Ramsau am Dachstein
|
2700 |
| 12. | 2022 |
 Kazan
|
Special Olympics in Germany
Special Olympics Deutschland eV (SOD) is the German organization of the world's largest, officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) sports movement for people with mental and multiple disabilities.
Special Olympics Germany eV was founded on October 3, 1991. As a non-Olympic umbrella organization, SOD is a member of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB). Today, SOD includes more than 40,000 athletes in all federal states, who are organized in 14 state associations. The offer of SOD and the regional associations currently comprises more than 220 events annually, including regional games, which are becoming increasingly important. SOD currently offers a total of 26 individual and team sports on a popular sports basis (18 summer and eight winter sports). A powerful practical example of inclusion is Special Olympics Unified Sports . In unified teams, people with and without disabilities play sports together, train and take part in competitions. Corresponding offers are now available in almost all sports and at all Special Olympics competitions at national and state level.
Up to and including 2018, SOD alternated between national summer and winter games. Since then, national games have been held every two years in summer and winter. With the award for the 2023 World Games, the decision on the location of the 2022 National Summer Games has also been made: They will take place in Berlin and then also be played as pre-games.
The athletes' Special Olympics oath is “I want to win, but if I can't win, I will bravely do my best”.
Special Olympics is more than sport and sees itself as an everyday and inclusive movement with a holistic offer. Examples of this at SOD:
- Unified Sports : People with and without disabilities together in a team
- Health: Consultations, Investigations, and the Healthy Athletes Program
- Academy: Education, Easy Language and Science
- Family services: Active involvement of families
- Management responsibility for athletes
The aim of Special Olympics is to help people with intellectual disabilities through sport to gain more recognition, self-confidence and, ultimately, more participation in society.
See also
- Special Olympics National Games
- Deaflympics
- Football World Cup 2006 for people with disabilities
- Down athletes festival
Individual evidence
Web links
- www.specialolympics.org - Special Olympics
- www.specialolympics.lu - Special Olympics Luxembourg
- www.specialolympics.de - Special Olympics Germany
- www.specialolympics.at - Special Olympics Austria
- www.specialolympics.ch - Special Olympics Switzerland
- www.olimpíadas.net - Special Olympics Spain