The History of Special Olympics
From a backyard summer camp for people with intellectual disabilities
to a global movement, Special Olympics has been changing lives
and attitudes for more than 40 years.
June 1962
Eunice Kennedy Shriver starts a summer day camp for children
and adults with intellectual disabilities at her home in Maryland
to explore their capabilities in a variety of sports and physical
activities. See a slideshow about the camp
19-20 July 1968
The 1st International Special Olympics Summer Games are held
at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois, USA. 1,000 individuals
with intellectual disabilities from 26 U.S. states and Canada
compete in track and field and swimming.
December 1971
The U.S. Olympic Committee gives Special Olympics official approval
as one of only two organizations authorized to use the name
“Olympics” in the United States.
5-11 February 1977
Steamboat Springs, Colorado, hosts the 1st International Special
Olympics Winter Games with more than 500 athletes competing
in skiing and skating events. CBS, ABC and NBC television networks
cover the Games.
1981
The Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics is launched
in Wichita, Kansas (USA), where Police Chief Richard LaMunyon
saw an urgent need to raise funds for and increase awareness
of Special Olympics. The Torch Run is now the movement's largest
grassroots fundraiser, raising $30 million annually.
September 1986
The United Nations in New York City launches the International
Year of Special Olympics under the banner “Special Olympics — Uniting
the World.”
October 1987
“A Very Special Christmas,” a benefit album featuring holiday
music by top rock & roll performers, is released worldwide.
Produced by Jimmy and Vicki Iovine of A&M Records and Bobby
Shriver, all proceeds benefit Special Olympics. More than 2
million records, compact discs and cassette tapes are sold.
February 1988
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) signs a historic agreement
with Sargent and Eunice Kennedy Shriver, in which the IOC officially
endorses and recognizes Special Olympics.
July 1988
Special Olympics Unified Sports® is launched at the annual Special
Olympics Conference in Reno, Nevada, and Lake Tahoe, California.
Bowling, volleyball and softball are the first sports to be
included.
20-27 March 1993
The 5th Special Olympics World Winter Games are hosted in the
beautiful Austrian cities of Salzburg and Schladming. These
are the first World Winter Games held outside North America.
1-9 July 1995
A number of new initiatives make their debut at the 9th Special
Olympics World Summer Games, including the Host Town Program,
Healthy Athletes® and Research and Policy Symposia, and, for
the first time, people with intellectual disabilities serve
as certified officials.
January 1997
Healthy Athletes becomes an official Special Olympics initiative,
providing health-care services to Special Olympics athletes
worldwide. The program includes free vision, hearing and dental
screening, injury prevention clinics and nutrition education.
20 July 1998
Special Olympics celebrates its 30th anniversary with the introduction
of the 30th Anniversary Special Olympics Sargent Shriver International
Global Messengers who travel the world as spokespeople for the
movement for the next two years.
17 December 1998
U.S. President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton
host “A Very Special Christmas from Washington D.C.”—marking
the first time that the White House hosts a Special Olympics
gala and the first time that artists from “A Very Special Christmas”
album series gather together to perform. In 2000, President
and Mrs. Clinton host “A very Special Christmas” for the second
time.
2000
The “Campaign for Special Olympics” sets unprecedented goals
to increase athlete participation by 1 million and to raise
more than $120 million over the course of the next five years,
changing the face of the movement.
18-22 May 2000
As part of the “Campaign for Special Olympics,” Arnold Schwarzenegger
joins Special Olympics athletes to light the “Flame of Hope”
at the Great Wall of China and launch the Special Olympics China
Millennium March, kicking off the most ambitious growth campaign
in the movement’s history. China pledges to increase its current
number of athletes from 50,000 to 500,000 by 2005.
12-14 July 2001
Cape Town, Johannesburg and Sun City South Africa, host Special
Olympics African Hope. Former President Nelson Mandela, Arnold
Schwarzenegger and Special Olympics athletes gather to light
the “Flame of Hope” and kick off the largest Law Enforcement
Torch Run through the streets of Cape Town. The event generates
awareness of the movement throughout the continent and marks
the launch of a major growth initiative to reach 100,000 new
athletes in Africa by 2005.
October 2001
Special Olympics develops and distributes SO Get Into It™ kits
for students with and without disabilities to schools and teachers
worldwide at no cost. The kit teaches young people about intellectual
disabilities while empowering them to “be the difference” by
learning values of inclusion, acceptance and respect.
19-20 July 2002
The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund partners with Special Olympics
to host an annual birthday celebration for its founder and chairperson,
former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, and helps
Special Olympics launch its Unified Sports® program.
21-29 June 2003
Ireland hosts the first Special Olympics World Summer Games
to be held outside the United States. 5,500 athletes participate
in this landmark event. It is the largest sporting event in
2003, capturing the hearts and imaginations of the Irish people.
20 June 2003
“The Multinational Study of Attitudes toward Individuals with
Intellectual Disabilities” reports on how people across the
world view the roles and capabilities of persons with intellectual
disabilities in the workplace, classroom and daily social life.
The study is the most comprehensive ever conducted on this subject.
30 October 2004
U.S. President George W. Bush signs the “Special Olympics Sport
and Empowerment Act, “ which appropriates $15 million per year
over five years to fund the growth of Special Olympics and support
initiatives that foster greater respect and understanding for
people with intellectual disabilities. The signing marks the
first time that Special Olympics secures support through legislation.
23 December 2005
"The Ringer," a Farrelly Brothers film starring Johnny Knoxville,
opens in theaters throughout Canada and the United States. The
film includes appearances from more than 150 athletes. Its producers
collaborate with Special Olympics to challenge destructive stereotypes
and negative thinking about people with intellectual disabilities.
2006
Special Olympics surpasses its goal of doubling the number of
athletes that participate worldwide to 2.5 million participants.
With sports at the core, the movement stands as a leader in
advancing rights and opportunities and policy change for its
athletes in 165 countries worldwide.
10 June 2006
President and Mrs. George W. Bush host a tribute dinner at the
White House to honor Special Olympics for its unprecedented
growth over the past five years on the birthday of founder Eunice
Kennedy Shriver.
October 2007
The city of Shanghai, China, hosts the 12th Special Olympics
World Summer Games, which are broadcast internationally on an
unprecedented scale. These Games, with more than 7,500 athletes
from 164 countries participating, are a historic moment in the
movement’s history.
July 2008
Special Olympics celebrates its 40th anniversary as a true global
movement, with almost 3 million athletes in more than 180 countries
around the world.
February 2009
The Special Olympics World Winter Games in Boise, Idaho, USA,
draws nearly 2,000 athletes from close to 100 countries . U.S.
Vice President Joe Biden visited and declared special needs
advocacy "a civil rights movement."
May 2009
The U.S. National Portrait Gallery unveils a historic portrait
of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the founder of Special Olympics.
This historic painting is the first portrait the Gallery has
ever commissioned of an individual who has not served as a U.S.
President or First Lady.
11 August 2009
The founder of Special Olympics, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, dies
at her family home in Massachusetts. Letters and messages celebrating
her contribution to humanity poured in from world leaders and
ordinary people around the world.
November 2009
"A Very Special Christmas 7" is released, infusing the Christmas
record series with the energy and talent of a new generation
of music stars.