Special Olympics
An international sports and inclusion organization providing year-round training and competition for people with intellectual disabilities.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Special Olympics is an international nonprofit sports organization serving children and adults with intellectual disabilities. It provides year-round training, local competitions, national programs and World Games in Olympic-style summer and winter sports. Unlike the Paralympic Games, which are elite multi-sport competitions held in the Olympic cycle, Special Olympics emphasizes broad participation, personal development, community inclusion and opportunities for athletes at many skill levels. Participation and programs are generally offered without charge to athletes. The movement grew out of Eunice Kennedy Shriver's belief that people with intellectual disabilities should have meaningful opportunities to take part in organized physical activity. In 1963 she established Camp Shriver at her home in Potomac, Maryland, creating a practical model for sports, recreation and social participation. The Kennedy Foundation subsequently supported similar programs at universities, recreation departments and community centers. Research and advocacy by physical-education specialists, including James N. Oliver and Frank Hayden, helped establish the case that exercise could improve physical health, confidence, social development and educational outcomes for people with intellectual disabilities. The first International Special Olympics Games took place at Soldier Field in Chicago on July 20, 1968. Approximately 1,000 athletes from the United States and Canada participated in the one-day event, organized with the Chicago Park District and supported by the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation. Shriver announced that the event would develop into an ongoing international movement. The United States Olympic Committee authorized use of the word Olympics in 1971, and the International Olympic Committee formally recognized Special Olympics in 1988. The organization expanded from a North American event into a worldwide network. Winter World Games began in 1977, and international hosting grew through Austria in 1993 and Ireland in 2003. The 2003 World Summer Games in Dublin were the first summer edition outside the United States and brought approximately 7,000 athletes from 150 countries. By the 2020s, Special Olympics reported millions of athletes and Unified Sports partners participating through programs in more than 200 countries and territories, with more than 100,000 competitions and events taking place annually across local, regional and international levels. Its work extends beyond competition. Young Athletes introduces children aged two to seven, with and without intellectual disabilities, to inclusive play and fundamental movement activities. Unified Sports brings athletes with and without intellectual disabilities onto shared teams. Healthy Athletes provides health education, screenings and referrals in areas such as vision, hearing, oral health and fitness. Education and advocacy programs seek to change public attitudes, reduce exclusion and promote inclusion in schools, workplaces and communities. In 2018, the organization framed this broader agenda through its Inclusion Revolution mission. Special Olympics is headquartered in the United States but operates through geographically organized national and regional programs. The World Games alternate between summer and winter editions on a two-year pattern, with each discipline generally recurring every four years. The latest World Summer Games were held in Berlin in 2023, while the latest World Winter Games were held in Turin, Italy, in March 2025.
History
Special Olympics developed from a movement to challenge the exclusion of people with intellectual disabilities from organized sport. Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who led the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation and served on a federal panel concerned with intellectual disability, established Camp Shriver in Potomac, Maryland, in June 1963. The camp demonstrated that children with intellectual disabilities could participate successfully in structured physical activities. The foundation helped similar initiatives spread through educational institutions, municipal recreation programs and community centers. The movement was also informed by research. James N. Oliver's work in England examined the effects of physical conditioning on children with intellectual disabilities. Canadian physical-education professor Frank Hayden argued that exercise could produce benefits extending beyond fitness, including improved confidence and social functioning. Hayden later worked with the Kennedy Foundation and developed concepts for broader competitive programs. In Chicago, physical-education teacher Anne McGlone Burke proposed an Olympic-style citywide event. With support from the Chicago Park District, the Kennedy Foundation and an advisory group of educators, researchers and athletes, the idea became an international competition. On July 20, 1968, the first International Special Olympics Games were held at Soldier Field in Chicago. Roughly 1,000 athletes from the United States and Canada competed in a single-day program. Shriver served as honorary chair and announced the formation of an organization that would continue the event on a biennial basis. International participation expanded quickly: France sent athletes to the 1970 games, and ten nations participated by 1972. The first World Winter Games were held in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, in 1977. Institutional recognition followed. In 1971, the United States Olympic Committee authorized Special Olympics to use the name Olympics. The United Nations designated 1986 as the year of the Special Olympics, and the International Olympic Committee granted formal recognition in 1988. The first World Games outside the United States were the 1993 Winter Games in Salzburg and Schladming, Austria. The Austrian president became the first head of state to personally open the event. Special Olympics increasingly broadened its role from sports competition to health, education and social inclusion. Healthy Athletes became an official initiative in 1997 and offered free screenings and health information to participants. The 2003 World Summer Games in Dublin were the first summer edition outside the United States and attracted approximately 7,000 athletes from 150 countries. In 2004, the United States enacted the Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act, authorizing support for Healthy Athletes, education and international expansion. The first Special Olympics USA Games followed in 2006 at Iowa State University, with teams from every U.S. state and the District of Columbia. Mary Davis was appointed chief executive officer in 2016, becoming the first person from outside the United States to hold that role. During the organization's fiftieth-anniversary period in 2018, it introduced the Inclusion Revolution as a mission focused on changing attitudes and expanding participation. Special Olympics also operates Unified Sports, Young Athletes and athlete leadership initiatives, linking sporting opportunities with inclusive schools, workplaces and communities. The World Games generally alternate between summer and winter editions in a two-year rhythm. Planned events can be affected by host-country circumstances: the 2009 Winter Games moved from Sarajevo to Boise after financial and venue-reconstruction problems, while the planned 2021 Swedish Winter Games were first delayed and the proposed 2022 Kazan edition was cancelled amid the effects of the COVID-19 period and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Berlin hosted the 2023 World Summer Games, and Turin hosted the 2025 World Winter Games. The organization now operates through a network of national programs across seven geographic regions and reports participation by millions of athletes and Unified Sports partners.
- 2025
Turin World Winter Games
[1]Turin hosted the World Winter Games from March 8 to March 15.
- 2023
Berlin World Summer Games
[1]Berlin hosted the World Summer Games from June 16 to June 25.
- 2018
Inclusion Revolution introduced
[1]The fiftieth-anniversary period brought a broader public mission centered on inclusion and changing social attitudes.
- 2003
First World Summer Games outside the United States
[1]Dublin hosted approximately 7,000 athletes from 150 countries.
- 1997
Healthy Athletes launches as an official initiative
[1]The organization expanded its mission through athlete health education and screening services.
- 1988
IOC recognition
[1]The International Olympic Committee officially recognized Special Olympics.
- 1977
First World Winter Games
[1]Steamboat Springs, Colorado, hosted the first Special Olympics World Winter Games.
- 1968
First International Special Olympics Games
[1]Chicago's Soldier Field hosted the first games, with about 1,000 athletes from the United States and Canada.
- 1963
Camp Shriver begins
[1]Eunice Kennedy Shriver established a sports and recreation camp for children with intellectual and physical disabilities in Potomac, Maryland.
Products and positioning
A global participation-centered sports and social-inclusion movement for people with intellectual disabilities, distinguished by year-round access, community-based competition and programs that bring people with and without intellectual disabilities together.
International sporting events · 1968
World Games
The flagship international competitions alternate between summer and winter editions. They bring together national delegations in multiple Olympic-style sports while retaining the organization's emphasis on participation, personal achievement and inclusive celebration rather than elite qualification alone.
Inclusive team sports
Unified Sports
Unified Sports places athletes with and without intellectual disabilities on shared teams or in shared sporting activities. The program uses competition and training to encourage friendship, teamwork and more inclusive schools, clubs and communities.
Early-childhood sports program
Young Athletes
Young Athletes is designed for children approximately two to seven years old, including children with and without intellectual disabilities. Games and movement activities develop motor skills, coordination, confidence and early social interaction before formal competition begins.
Health and wellness program · 1997
Healthy Athletes
Healthy Athletes provides health education, screenings and, where available, referrals or treatment through sports events and local programs. Its purpose is to address health disparities affecting people with intellectual disabilities and connect athletic participation with broader wellbeing.
Community sports services · 1968
Year-round sports training and competitions
National and local programs provide recurring training and competition in summer and winter sports. Activities range from community-level events to regional and national championships, giving athletes regular opportunities to build skills and receive recognition.
Controversies
2022
Special Olympics sues over Chicago group's use of its name
Special Olympics Inc. sued Special Children’s Charities of Chicago, alleging that the group was improperly presenting itself online as “Special Olympics Chicago” after its permission to use the name ended. The lawsuit asks a federal judge to stop the group from using the name.
Marketing campaigns
- 2018Inclusion Revolution
Global
Introduced during the organization's fiftieth-anniversary period, this mission positioned Special Olympics as a movement for social inclusion as well as sport, challenging stereotypes and exclusion affecting people with intellectual disabilities.
Outcome. Adopted as a broader organizational inclusion platform.
Brand decisions
2019
Retain federal program fundingStrategyBackground
The administration proposed removing federal funding associated with Special Olympics programs for the third consecutive annual budget cycle.
Action taken
Congress rejected the proposed elimination after bipartisan resistance and public criticism.
Aftermath
Federal support was maintained for the organization rather than removed as proposed.
2018
Adopt the Inclusion Revolution missionStrategyBackground
The fiftieth anniversary provided an opportunity to articulate the organization's wider social purpose.
Action taken
Special Olympics framed its work around a campaign to change attitudes and expand inclusion in schools, communities and public life.
Aftermath
Inclusion became more explicit as a core objective alongside sports training and competition.
1997
Integrate health services into the sports missionStrategyBackground
People with intellectual disabilities face significant health inequalities, and the organization sought to make sporting participation a gateway to preventive care.
Action taken
Healthy Athletes was made an official initiative offering screenings and health information.
Aftermath
The movement broadened its role from competition provider to sports, health and inclusion organization.
1968
Convert a one-day Chicago event into an international movementStrategyBackground
The original concept was a citywide Olympic-style competition, but the Kennedy Foundation and Eunice Kennedy Shriver saw potential for a continuing international organization.
Action taken
The first games were used to announce recurring International Special Olympics competitions and the formation of Special Olympics.
Aftermath
The organization expanded from a North American event into a global network of national programs and World Games.
Recent events
Reported
Special Olympics sues over Chicago group's use of its name[3]
Special Olympics Inc. sued Special Children’s Charities of Chicago, alleging that the group was improperly presenting itself online as “Special Olympics Chicago” after its permission to use the name ended. The lawsuit asks a federal judge to stop the group from using the name.
TravisMathew signs Chris Pratt as ambassador[4]
TravisMathew signed actor Chris Pratt as its first ambassador in the entertainment space. The partnership kicked off on November 8 with a charity flash sale benefiting Special Olympics.
- Unconfirmed
Reported
Gallagher expands Special Olympics partnership to regional markets[5]
Gallagher expanded its partnership with Special Olympics to include Australia, Illinois, New York, Southern California, and Ontario. The partnership supports the organisation’s sport and coach development programming at the community level.
Reported
Streamlabs launches charity fundraising tool[6]
Streamlabs launched a charity offering built into its live-streaming software, working with several charitable organizations to kick it off. The program was in beta at the time of the report.
Sources6 sources
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