About Special Olympics

The Special Olympics organization has a long and storied history, the beginnings of which started in Eunice Kennedy Shriver’s backyard in the early 1960s as a summer camp for children with intellectual disabilities. It has since grown to become an international movement that brings together people with and without intellectual disabilities through the transformative power of sports and play. It includes Unified sports programs in which individuals with and without intellectual disabilities compete in various sports on the same team. The Special Olympics supports over 4 million athletes, volunteers and coaches throughout the world, culminating in the World Winter and Summer Games.