In June 1962, Eunice Kennedy Shriver started a day camp for children with intellectual disabilities at her home in Potomac, Maryland.She started this camp because she was concerned about children with intellectual disabilities having nowhere to play. Using Camp Shriver as an example, Shriver, who was head of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation and part of President Kennedy's Panel on Mental Retardation, promoted the concept of involvement in physical activity and competition opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities. Camp Shriver became an annual event, and the Kennedy Foundation (of which Shriver was executive vice president) gave grants to universities, recreation departments and community centers to hold similar camps.
Shriver and Kennedy’s oldest sister, Rosemary Kennedy, underwent a lobotomy in an effort by their father to cure her mental disability. The brain damage inflicted by the operation caused her to be permanently incapacitated. This disability is often credited as Shriver's inspiration to form Special Olympics, but Shriver told The New York Times in 1995 that was not exactly the case.
The first International Special Olympics Summer Games were held in 1968 at Soldier Field in Chicago. About 1,000 athletes from the U.S. and Canada took part in the one-day event, which was a joint venture by the Kennedy Foundation and the Chicago Park District. Anne McGlone Burke, a physical education teacher with the Chicago Park District and recipient of a Kennedy Foundation grant, began with the idea for a one-time Olympic-style athletic competition for people with special needs. Burke then approached Eunice Kennedy Shriver to fund the event. Shriver encouraged Burke to expand on the idea and the JPK Jr. Foundation provided a grant of $25,000.
The advisory committee to the Chicago Special Olympics included Dr. William Freeberg, Southern Illinois University; Dr. Frank J. Hayden, Joseph P. Kennedy Foundation; Dr. Arthur Peavy; William McFetridge, Anne McGlone Burke and Stephen Kelly of the Chicago Park District; and Olympic decathlon champion Rafer Johnson. Eunice Kennedy Shriver was honorary chairman. At the July 1968 games, Shriver announced the formation of Special Olympics and that more games would be held every two years as a "Biennial International Special Olympics."
In 1971, The U.S. Olympic Committee gave the Special Olympics official approval to use the name “Olympics”.
The first 1977 Special Olympics World Winter Games were held in February 1977 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, USA.
In 1988, the Special Olympics was officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
In 1997, Healthy Athletes became an official Special Olympics initiative, offering health information and screenings to Special Olympics athletes worldwide. By 2010, the Healthy Athletes program had given free health screenings and treatment to more than 1 million people with intellectual disabilities.
=== The crowd at the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games Opening Ceremonies in Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland. ===
In 2003 the first Special Olympics World Summer Games to be held outside of the United States took place in Dublin, Ireland. Approximately 7,000 athletes from 150 countries competed over 18 disciplines. The Dublin games were also the first to have their own opening and closing ceremonies broadcast live, performed by the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese. Most significantly the 2003 games dramatically changed the perceptions and attitudes of society regarding the abilities and limitations of people with intellectual disabilities. The opening ceremony of the 2003 Games has been described by President McAleese as "a time when Ireland was at its superb best".
On October 30, 2004, President George W. Bush signed into law the "Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act," Public Law 108-406. The bill authorized funding for its Healthy Athletes, Education, and Worldwide Expansion programs. Co-sponsored by Representatives Roy Blunt (R-MO), and Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and Senators Rick Santorum (R-PA) and Harry Reid (D-NV), the bills were passed by unanimous consent in both chambers.
In July 2006, the first Special Olympics USA National Games were held at Iowa State University. Teams from all 50 states and theDistrict of Columbia participated.
In 2008, the Special Olympics and Best Buddies International launched the Spread the Word to End the Word campaign to encourage individuals to stop using the word "retard" in everyday speech.
In 2011, Senators Tom Harkin and Roy Blunt and Representatives Steny Hoyer and Peter King introduced the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act to authorize federal funding for Special Olympics Programs and Best Buddies Programs.
Interview with Ian; A Special Olympics Volunteer
Fun Facts about Special Olympics:
Nearly 3.5 Million Special Olympics athletes worldwide
226 Programs around the world
More than 170 Countries around the world
Seven Regional Offices
32 Olympics-type sports
44,000 competitions annually
805,000 volunteers worldwide
250,000 coaches around the world
Approximately 67 percent of our Special Olympics athletes are of school age (8-21) and over 31 percent are adults (22+); Special Olympics also serves nearly 57,000 individuals in the 2-7 age group. Female athletes account for 38 percent of the total athlete population
Nearly 70% of persons with intellectual disabilities have the capacity to function at much higher
levels than society’s perceptions allow or encourage
History:
In June 1962, Eunice Kennedy Shriver started a day camp for children with intellectual disabilities at her home in Potomac, Maryland.She started this camp because she was concerned about children with intellectual disabilities having nowhere to play. Using Camp Shriver as an example, Shriver, who was head of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation and part of President Kennedy's Panel on Mental Retardation, promoted the concept of involvement in physical activity and competition opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities. Camp Shriver became an annual event, and the Kennedy Foundation (of which Shriver was executive vice president) gave grants to universities, recreation departments and community centers to hold similar camps.
Shriver and Kennedy’s oldest sister, Rosemary Kennedy, underwent a lobotomy in an effort by their father to cure her mental disability. The brain damage inflicted by the operation caused her to be permanently incapacitated. This disability is often credited as Shriver's inspiration to form Special Olympics, but Shriver told The New York Times in 1995 that was not exactly the case.
The first International Special Olympics Summer Games were held in 1968 at Soldier Field in Chicago. About 1,000 athletes from the U.S. and Canada took part in the one-day event, which was a joint venture by the Kennedy Foundation and the Chicago Park District. Anne McGlone Burke, a physical education teacher with the Chicago Park District and recipient of a Kennedy Foundation grant, began with the idea for a one-time Olympic-style athletic competition for people with special needs. Burke then approached Eunice Kennedy Shriver to fund the event. Shriver encouraged Burke to expand on the idea and the JPK Jr. Foundation provided a grant of $25,000.
The advisory committee to the Chicago Special Olympics included Dr. William Freeberg, Southern Illinois University; Dr. Frank J. Hayden, Joseph P. Kennedy Foundation; Dr. Arthur Peavy; William McFetridge, Anne McGlone Burke and Stephen Kelly of the Chicago Park District; and Olympic decathlon champion Rafer Johnson. Eunice Kennedy Shriver was honorary chairman. At the July 1968 games, Shriver announced the formation of Special Olympics and that more games would be held every two years as a "Biennial International Special Olympics."
In 1971, The U.S. Olympic Committee gave the Special Olympics official approval to use the name “Olympics”.
The first 1977 Special Olympics World Winter Games were held in February 1977 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, USA.
In 1988, the Special Olympics was officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
In 1997, Healthy Athletes became an official Special Olympics initiative, offering health information and screenings to Special Olympics athletes worldwide. By 2010, the Healthy Athletes program had given free health screenings and treatment to more than 1 million people with intellectual disabilities.
===The crowd at the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games Opening Ceremonies in Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland.
===
In 2003 the first Special Olympics World Summer Games to be held outside of the United States took place in Dublin, Ireland. Approximately 7,000 athletes from 150 countries competed over 18 disciplines. The Dublin games were also the first to have their own opening and closing ceremonies broadcast live, performed by the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese. Most significantly the 2003 games dramatically changed the perceptions and attitudes of society regarding the abilities and limitations of people with intellectual disabilities. The opening ceremony of the 2003 Games has been described by President McAleese as "a time when Ireland was at its superb best".
On October 30, 2004, President George W. Bush signed into law the "Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act," Public Law 108-406. The bill authorized funding for its Healthy Athletes, Education, and Worldwide Expansion programs. Co-sponsored by Representatives Roy Blunt (R-MO), and Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and Senators Rick Santorum (R-PA) and Harry Reid (D-NV), the bills were passed by unanimous consent in both chambers.
In July 2006, the first Special Olympics USA National Games were held at Iowa State University. Teams from all 50 states and theDistrict of Columbia participated.
In 2008, the Special Olympics and Best Buddies International launched the Spread the Word to End the Word campaign to encourage individuals to stop using the word "retard" in everyday speech.
In 2011, Senators Tom Harkin and Roy Blunt and Representatives Steny Hoyer and Peter King introduced the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act to authorize federal funding for Special Olympics Programs and Best Buddies Programs.
Interview with Ian; A Special Olympics Volunteer
Fun Facts about Special Olympics:
Nearly 3.5 Million Special Olympics athletes worldwide
226 Programs around the world
More than 170 Countries around the world
Seven Regional Offices
32 Olympics-type sports
44,000 competitions annually
805,000 volunteers worldwide
250,000 coaches around the world
Approximately 67 percent of our Special Olympics athletes are of school age (8-21) and over 31 percent are adults (22+); Special Olympics also serves nearly 57,000 individuals in the 2-7 age group. Female athletes account for 38 percent of the total athlete population
Nearly 70% of persons with intellectual disabilities have the capacity to function at much higher
levels than society’s perceptions allow or encourage