Healthy Athletes Update

Special Smiles was one of the Healthy Athletes disciplines providing screenings during the event in Romania.

Special Olympics Romania, UNICEF Project Offers Unified Sports, Young Athletes, Healthy Athletes in one Initiative

By David Evangelista, Director, Program Development and Analysis, Special Olympics Division of Constituent Services and Support

Special Olympics Romania and UNICEF have joined forces for the “Inclusive Communities for Children with Intellectual Disabilities” project throughout Romania, most recently held March 19-20 in the city of Cluj. Hosted by the Faculty of Sport and Physical Education of Cluj, the event offered a variety of activities for children with and without intellectual disabilities, including Special Olympics Unified Sports, Young Athletes® and Healthy Athletes® activites. The event was one of three final projects of the initiative, and is part of a wider, global partnership between Special Olympics and UNICEF dedicated to provide services for children with intellectual disabilities.

“The spirit of equity and social inclusion promoted by the Convention on the Rights of the Child demands appropriate projects to empower children with disabilities and their families by their participation in society and by building self reliance and confidence,” said Voichita Pop, Child Protection Officer, UNICEF Romania “We are committed to the partnership with Special Olympics Romania, as the current projects is one of the solutions for fulfillment of the rights of these children, to which everybody can contribute and at the same time, be rewarded."

Special Olympics Unified Sports provided a completely inclusive experience for children in Cluj with and without intellectual disabilities by allowing them to compete on the same teams. Designed for children ages 2-7, the Young Athletes program is a play activities program for children with intellectual disabilities that develops motor skills as well as social and cognitive development. The program also serves as an opportunity to bring together parents of children with intellectual disabilities who participated to network, share experiences, and form local committees to further the work of Special Olympics.

During the event, 20 parents attended and discussed the expansion of the Young Athletes program throughout Romania, in support of more parents and their children.

“Thanks to the Young Athletes program, my child became more conscious about his body and about the world around him- about shapes, colors, movements. He also feels joy when interacting with other children, when running and jumping along them. It was also a chance for me to share my experience with other parents and to raise my expectations about my child”, commented one parent in attendance at Cluj.

The parents also talked about the importance of inclusive education, to offer more of these opportunities for inclusion and participation for children both with and without intellectual disabilities.

Volunteers with Healthy Athletes were also on hand to provide screenings for Opening Eyes, Special Smiles and FunFitness.

Special Olympics Romania and UNICEF have been active nationally in implementing sports, health, and motor activities program in support of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The national partnership is part of a global effort between UNICEF and Special Olympics to bring increased services to children with intellectual disabilities and their families, officially launched in October 2007 at the Special Olympics Global Policy Summit in Shanghai, China.

“People with intellectual disabilities can and will succeed if given the opportunity. Through this project UNICEF gave an opportunity- the opportunity for children with disabilities from state institutions and from families to run side by side in a competition and the opportunity for children from mainstream schools to cheer them,” said Christian Ispas, National Director of Special Olympics Romania. “Our message about dignity, acceptance and the chance to reach one’s potential is perfectly sustained by the UNICEF’s activities and its financial involvement is essential for our development."