Special Olympics Programs

Special Olympics
Special Olympics is an international program with a mission of providing year-round athletic training to children and adults with intellectual disabilities. It also gives over 1.7 million special-needs athletes an opportunity to showcase their skills and abilities by holding more than 20,000 competitions around the world each year. (These1.7 million people are a mere 1% of this population group.)

The sports training helps develop physical fitness and strength and gives them self-esteem, a sense of accomplishment, friendships with other Special Olympics athletes, and a unique community to be a part of. It builds a bridge into society at large, which benefits not only the athletes, but everybody else as well. The general society is introduced in a positive manner to this segment of the population, and public awareness brings understanding, acceptance, and respect.

In an interesting play on words, Special Olympics may be for people with special needs, but it would never be possible without the hard work and dedication of the very special people who created the program and the ones who keep it going. So it is the truth to say that the Special Olympics Program is all about special people.

Take for example my friend MacKenzie Weare, an inspirational young man who bravely faces each day with Down Syndrome. Mac is 18 years old and has been a participant of the program for 5 years. This past May (2005) he took home three gold, one bronze, and one silver medal from the Hawaii State Summer Games. He participates in a variety of activities such as t-ball, soccer, basketball, and of course, his very favorite of them all-power-lifting. Most of his medals are from that sport and he can squat and dead-lift 165 pounds (that’s more than he weighs). He puts those big muscles to big use by helping his mom, Marina, carry the heavy laundry baskets. I’d say Mac is pretty special, wouldn’t you?

And then there are special people like Eunice Kennedy Shriver.

In the Beginning�
In 1963, Eunice Kennedy Shriver started a day camp for people with intellectual disabilities. Through that experience she came to the conclusion that these individuals were capable of much more in the realm of physical activities than the experts of the time believed. Behaving in a manner very typical of special people, she turned her thoughts into action.

In 1968, the First International Summer Games were held in Chicago, Illinois. By the end of that same year, Special Olympics was established as a non-profit charitable organization and the American Association on Mental Deficiency, the Council for Exceptional Children, and the National Association for Retarded Citizens had all pledged their support. (The term “retarded” is no longer socially acceptable and has been replaced in modern vernacular with “developmentally delayed.”)

The Athletes
With more than 200 Special Olympics Programs worldwide, over 150 countries can proudly say that one or more Special Olympics athletes train on their soil.

The program is available to any person over the age of eight who has been verifiably identified (by a professional or through an agency) as meeting the following criteria before the age of eighteen:

Cognitive delay (slow learning), which leaves them two or more years behind their peers.
Significant limitations in two or more adaptive skills.

Adaptive skills include self-care, social skills, leisure, communication, health and safety, home living, functional academics, self-direction, and community use and work. In essence, adaptive skills = daily living skills.

It is possible for an individual to have limited intellectual functioning but not be diagnosed with intellectual disability. Nonetheless, intellectual disability is more prevalent than cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, blindness, or deafness.

A person may not be excluded from Special Olympics because of sex, race, religion, color, national origin, or sexual orientation. The Special Olympics founders, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Timothy P. Shriver, and Sargent Shriver, went above and beyond that standard Equal Opportunity stipulation.

In their commitment to these very special athletes, they made certain that no person would be excluded due to economic circumstances. All costs for all athletes are funded with monies received from gracious and generous individual donors and corporations. Every athlete is provided with full participation in all aspects of the program.

Fundraising
While there are many people involved in many avenues of fundraising for Special Olympics, the Law Enforcement Torch Run�® is the largest and most well-known grass-roots movement. It was started by Police Chief Richard LaMunyon of Wichita, Kansas in 1981 and adopted by the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

In 2004, more over 85,000 officers from 35 nations raised more than 20 million dollars for international Special Olympics Programs with the Flame of Hope they carried. The Torch Run itself is a running event, but much of the proceeds come through merchandise sales (T-shirts are popular), corporate donations, pledges/donations for runners, golf tournaments, and any other event that is thought up locally.

For instance, Larry Parker is an employee of the international sponsor CARQUEST, which turned April 2004 into “Law Enforcement Torch Run Awareness Month” for the company. This man single-handedly raised more than 50,000 dollars when he set a world record for consecutive hours of bowling. If you ask me, that makes Larry Parker pretty dang special.

The Code of Conduct for Athletes
All Special Olympics athletes agree to an across-the-board code of conduct. Failure to comply with this code can result in disciplinary action by the local program or a committee for the World Games, depending on the situation. In the worst case scenario, an athlete will lose the privilege of participation in an event. The code addresses three areas, sportsmanship, training/competition, and personal responsibility.

In regards to sportsmanship the athletes agree to behave in a respectful manner to all persons involved, to use appropriate language, and not to swear at or insult other persons.

They agree to learn and follow the rules of their chosen sport, to train regularly, to ask questions when something is not understood, and to always try their best. They also agree to not “hold back” during preliminary competitions with the intent of getting into an easier division at the finals.

Personal responsibility requires a commitment to obey all laws and Special Olympics rules. Athletes agree that they will not take performance-enhancement drugs, smoke in non-smoking areas, make unwanted/inappropriate contact (physical, verbal, or sexual) with others, and last but not least they agree not to drink alcohol or use illegal drugs at Special Olympics Events.

Training
There are activities and events to accommodate all ages and ability levels. Performance level is not determined by the degree of intellectual disability, but some conditions do present distinct challenges to be met by the athlete and the coach.

There are more than 140,000 well-qualified coaches offering comprehensive training all year long, general and sport-specific. They also help recruit assistant coaches and other athletes, obtain the equipment and facilities necessary for training, provide community demonstrations, and help start “Partner Club” of peer coaches with their athletes.

Like the athletes, Special Olympics coaches must agree to a Code of Conduct. This code addresses respect, positive experience for the athletes, quality service, professionalism/personal responsibility, and safety.

Coaches agree to treat everyone equally by respecting the rights, dignity, and worth of all people in Special Olympics, including the spectators, thereby presenting themselves as positive role models for the athletes.

They commit to making the athlete’s time with Special Olympics a positive experience by respecting the athlete’s abilities and goals, making sure that the athlete in their care competes in evens that are both appropriate and challenging for the individual, and by communicating and instructing the athletes with simple language and clear instructions.

Professionalism must be maintained at all times and all levels of involvement with Special Olympics. Setting an example of presentation, punctuality, self-control, and respect for others is as important as showing proper technique in an activity. The coach must also be alert to any abuse from others that may be directed at an athlete in his or her care.

Commitment to quality service includes ongoing education, solid understanding of the rules and skills of the sports being taught. It also includes keeping copies of medical, training, and competition records of each athlete in their care, and using these records to plan out a training program that is athlete-specific.

The health and safety of the athletes must at all times be a priority in the mind of a coach. The athlete trusts the coach’s judgment that the equipment is safe to use and that the facilities are a suitable environment for training.

Competition
“Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.” With those words, Roman gladiators entered the arena to fight for their lives, and with those words, the athletes affirm their courage during the Opening Ceremonies at the competitions.

Special Olympics competitive events, like the rest of its activities, are designed to reflect the ceremonies, standards, traditions, values, and events of the modern international Olympics. Thus there is a Summer Special Olympics and a Winter Special Olympics.

At the summertime events, athletes compete in the following sports:
Aquatics
Athletics
Badminton
Basketball
Bocce
Bowling
Cycling
Equestrian Sports
Football
Golf
Gymnastics (Artistic and Rhythmic)
Powerlifting
Roller Skating
Sailing
Softball
Table Tennis
Team Handball
Tennis
Volleyball

At the winter events, competitions are held in the following sports:
Alpine Skiing
Cross Country Skiing
Figure Skating
Floor Hockey
Snowboarding
Snowshoeing
Speed Skating

An awards ceremony is held after each competition and every athlete receives public recognition. The first, second, and third place winners receive traditional medals, and the fourth through final place winners receive ribbons. Everyone goes home with a reminder of the completion of the goal that they trained so hard to achieve.

Volunteers
Aside from the tens of thousands of coaches who help make Special Olympics possible, there are over 500,000 volunteers committed to making it all happen. High school students, college students, community groups, fraternal organizations, educators, retirees, parents, amateurs and professionals from the sports world (officials, coaches, referees), and corporate employees. Some international companies have thousands of employees throughout the world volunteering at some level on a regular basis.

A “regular basis” may mean anything from one day a year at specific events to many hours a week spent on public relations, fundraising, administrative work, or coaching, just to name a few of the positions that keep the program in perpetual motion.

Event-specific volunteers are great for people with a lot of heart but just a little time. No experience is necessary and brief training is provided before the event. Event-specific volunteers can often be found keeping score, presenting awards, and escorting athletes. You don’t need a special degree or supernatural talents (although you certainly won’t be rejected on those grounds), just a desire to be a part of this great adventure. If this sounds like something you might be interested in, contact your local Special Olympics and tell them you’re available.

Athletes are strongly encouraged to take on volunteer roles as well. Their experiences in the entire process make their perspective and feedback extremely valuable. Of course, the interpersonal and professional skills that they have acquired through Special Olympics are put to use in this capacity, providing yet another validation of the program.

Athlete-volunteers are an encouragement to their peers, and an example that there are many ways to be a part of this special community. After all, this people group is just like the rest of us-we’re not all interested in sports, but we all have something to offer.

The Great Give and Take
It’s funny how the give and take system works sometimes. Going in, you might be inclined to think that you are giving, and it’s true-you are. But when you come out on the other side of an encounter with one of these special athletes or events, you take with you so much more than you brought.

You can measure the number of hours or minutes that you gave up. You can count the number of dollars that you donated. But inspiration and hope are immeasurable treasures, just like the looks of pure and unadulterated joy on the faces of these people who have overcome such incredible obstacles to arrive at their moment to shine. And shine they do, with such light that any thoughts of your own contribution to the moment just fade away into the shadows on the sidelines. And then understanding comes. You gave a piece of yourself to them, and in return they gave you everything they had. There’s just no comparison.