Unified Sports Brings People Together
Team sports are about having fun, promoting physical health and bringing people together. Special Olympics Unified Sports® teams do all of that – and shatter stereotypes about intellectual disability in the process.
Get In the Game. St. Benedict's-Nokuthula Unified Sports basketball team
Bringing People Together
In communities around the world, from the United States to Southeast Asia, Special Olympics athletes and their teammates without intellectual disabilities practice and play together on Unified Sports teams.
Unified Sports is a moving and exciting initiative for higher ability athletes of all ages, from youth to adults. Mixed teams provide the public direct opportunities to experience first-hand the capabilities and courage of Special Olympics athletes.
By having fun together in a variety of sports ranging from basketball to golf to figure skating, Unified Sports athletes and partners improve their physical fitness, sharpen their skills, challenge the competition and help to overcome prejudices about intellectual disability.
On the Court
The St. Benedicts–Nokuthula Unified Sports basketball team in Johannesburg, South Africa, is one example. Started at the suggestion of Special Olympics athlete Ephraim Mohlakane, the team is made up of students from St. Benedict’s private preparatory school and the Nokuthula Special School, which Mohlakane attends. Every Friday afternoon since 2004, students who are black and white, with intellectual disability and without, have been practicing their skills, shattering mutually held stereotypes, forging a relationship between the two schools and building meaningful friendships on and off the court.
When St. Benedict’s hosted the Special Olympics South Africa National Games, the Unified Sports basketball team made an impact that reached beyond the school and into the local community. Parents and volunteers at the Games praised the program, and the school’s principal, for offering students an opportunity for learning valuable life lessons outside the classroom.
In 2007, the St. Benedict's–Nokuthula Unified Basketball Team got a chance to bring their message of acceptance to an even wider audience when they represented Special Olympics South Africa at the Special Olympics World Summer Games. An athlete and a partner from the team narrated their experiences at the Global Youth Summit held during the Games, sharing the transformative power of Unified Sports with young people from 16 countries. The boys were also successful on the court, winning a bronze medal.
Inspired by the team’s success, St. Benedict’s School implemented the SO Get Into It service-learning diversity program in all grades. Today, the Special Olympics athlete oath – Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt. – remains pinned on notice boards throughout both schools, a reminder to all those who were brave enough to take on the Special Olympics challenge that they are winners.
Inspiring Leadership
Special Olympics Unified Sports is fun for all ages – but is particularly powerful as an educational tool in schools. Special education teachers have reported the program to be extremely effective at integrating youth, promoting physical activity and inspiring leadership. One teacher reported, “I’ve seen more interaction on the field today between classmates than I’ve seen in my classroom all year.”
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