Building Communities

War, ethnic conflicts and threats of terror are constants in the 21st century. Yet every day, around the world, Special Olympics proves that people of all backgrounds, cultures, races and ages can work together peaceably to celebrate what we have in common and to focus on those in need. Throughout our 40-year history, athletes with intellectual disabilities have come together to compete, even when they represent nations or areas that have been divided.

Ready Set Go! In Beirut, Lebanon, the city halted a civil war so Special Olympics athletes could safely compete on the streets.

War Pauses for Games to Embark
In Beirut, Lebanon, the city halted a civil war so Special Olympics athletes could safely compete on the streets. At the 1999 Special Olympics World Games, athletes from Israel and the Palestinian Authority competed side-by-side in the doubles table tennis competition. In the Balkans, 500 athletes from 11 countries, including Bosnia and Kosovo, gathered for the first-ever Southeast Europe Friendship Games. And most recently, Special Olympics athletes in Iraq and Afghanistan have been gathering to practice in the midst of invasion and bombings. Both countries were able to send their first-ever delegations to compete in the 2003 and 2007 World Summer Games.

With every new Special Olympics Program that opens, a local community emerges to support the athletes’ courage. This community reaches outward in every direction, beyond the sphere of sports.

Steps in the Right Direction From All Walks of Life
Coaches, trainers and volunteers step forward to help the athletes. Family members join the Family Support Network and organize to address community needs and concerns. Spectators at events join Unified Sports® teams, where athletes with and without intellectual disabilities compete together. Schools and students engage in our Youth Outreach program and attend Youth Summits, where athletes and young people without disabilities come together to discuss diversity and acceptance. Doctors, nurses and other volunteer clinicians give their time and expertise at basic health screenings through Healthy Athletes®.

It's Sports and So Much More
By involving such a diverse range of individuals and groups, Special Olympics paves the way for other community-based development — education, health, hunger, nutrition and more. Special Olympics Programs are a catalytic force for communities, promoting volunteerism, civic engagement and inclusion of people who are different in areas where these values are uncommon. This power to connect people and promote acceptance of difference – whether ethnic, religious, tribal or intellectual – is a precondition for security and peace, from Cheyenne to Shanghai.

Help us build a safer, more accepting world for everyone. Special Olympics is the world’s fastest-growing global grass-roots movement, with 75 percent of our new Programs in war-torn or developing countries like East Timor, Vietnam and Rwanda. We are making headway in areas that need help, but we have a long way to go.


	What YOU Can Do
	Give now and help Special Olympics transform the lives of people with intellectual disabilities. Get involved with a Special Olympics Program near you. Take the R-word pledge to stop the insulting use of the word "retard." Take it to the playing field; join a Unified Sports team near you.