Get into the game, you can play as part of Unified sports,
you can coach by being a training partner and you can lead your in
your community in many ways.
There's a good chance that there's a Special Olympics Program
in your area to help you get involved, make new friends and join the
movement. You'll make a difference and make a friend.
Special Olympics is a grass-roots movement that provides
year-round sports training and athlete competition to children and
adults with intellectual disabilities through more than 200 Programs
in 160 countries around the world. To find a Special Olympics
Program near you, use the Program Locator below.
From the drop-down ¡°Select a Program¡± list below, select a
state or country. Then click the ¡°Locate¡± button. To clear the
Program Locator and try again, click ¡°Reset.¡±
There¡¯s a good chance that there¡¯s a Special Olympics Program in
your area to help you get involved, make new friends and join the
movement. You¡¯ll make a difference and make a friend.
Play Special Olympics
Unified Sports® teammates are more than fans - they are
teammates. Special Olympics Unified Sports teams combine
approximately equal numbers of Special Olympics athletes and
athletes without intellectual disabilities (called partners) on
sports teams for training and competition.
Coach
You can help coach a Special Olympics athlete by being a training
partner. Share training tips and work out together. It¡¯s a great way
to train and meet a new friend.
Find out about
how to get involved in Special Olympics near you.
¡°Young people have new, fresh ideas, and are brave about trying new
things. Young coaches are not so overprotective and give us new
challenges. A lot of Special Olympics athletes are young, so we need
young coaches and Unified Sports partners. They understand the needs
and ideas of young athletes, because we all have the same issues
(school, parents, jobs, friends).
- Patrick Brehmer, Special Olympics Global Messenger (Special
Olympics Germany)
Lead
Special Olympics provides countless ways to play a leadership role
in your own community and help support Special Olympics. With
Special Olympics Youth Fan Playbook [Link to download playbook],
you¡¯ll learn about all the different ways to get involved and the
tools to empower you to make a difference. Below is just sample of
some of the things you¡¯ll find in the Playbook:
Start your own Special Olympics Team
Organize a Sports Expo at your school, church, or
community center.
Report on the athletes who compete in Special Olympics
events in your communities for your school or community newspaper
or Web site.
Organize a Youth Summit (for ages 12-18) for people with
and without disabilities. Share ideas and strategize with Special
Olympics to reverse negative, stereotypical attitudes about people
with disabilities;
