Winter 2006/2007
Welcome to the November/December 2006 issue of the Healthy Athletes newsletter. We waited until now to publish this issue because so much has taken place this summer and fall that we want to share with you.
At the first-ever Special Olympics USA National Games, more than 2,700 athletes from across the United States “went for the gold” by participating in 12 Olympic-style sporting events. More than 2,000 coaches and officials, 8,000 volunteers, and thousands more spectators cheered these athletes to victory at venues on and around the Iowa State University campus in Ames, Iowa (USA). In addition, each of the Healthy Athletes® disciplines conducted a train-the-trainer program designed to increase the number of trained clinical directors in the United States, followed by each discipline offering screenings to the athletes throughout the Games. A total of 1,337 athletes (nearly 50 percent of the attendees) participated in 4,031 Healthy Athletes screenings. What a great event this was! The excitement, energy and camaraderie that were generated made it a success.
Prior to the Opening Ceremonies, two significant actions took place. The first was the 2006 Special Olympics USA National Games Symposium, entitled “Compete, Empower, Unite.” This symposium brought experts together to address the status of people with intellectual disabilities within the United States, share the latest outcomes of research in the fields of health care, education and public health, and suggest avenues to improve the quality of life for people with intellectual disabilities. As a part of this symposium, a call went out to health profession students to apply for grants which allowed them to attend the symposium and to be a part of the movement of change.
The second event was a field hearing of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee's Labor/HHS/Education Subcommittee titled, “Crossing the Finish Line: A Better Future for People with Intellectual Disability.” The hearing was chaired by Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and witnesses included Julie Gerberding, M.D., Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Timothy Shriver, Chairman, Special Olympics, Inc., and Antonia Novello, M.D., Commissioner of Health, New York State Health and former U.S. Surgeon General. The testimony pointed out the areas where work is still needed, including access to health care, improving educational programs for health professionals, the need for an electronic health record, and the opportunity for people with intellectual disabilities to work without losing necessary health care coverage.
During the Games, Special Olympics Global Messengers participated as researchers by assisting in a survey of athletes participating in the Games that looked at how they feel about their own health. Kester Edwards, a former Special Olympics Trinidad & Tobago athlete; Darcie Mersereau, Special Olympics Manager of Research and Evaluation; Coreen Harada, University of Massachusetts; and Dettrick Stith, Senior Manager of Health Promotion for Special Olympics, developed the survey. The results were presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association in November. You can read about how that survey and other Special Olympics research projects have received attention around the world by visiting the Global News section of the Special Olympics Web site.
Much of the work we do for Healthy Athletes would not be possible without the generous support of our outstanding sponsors. One of those sponsors - Essilor International - was recognized by Special Olympics at the USA National Games for its contributions to the movement and the health of its athletes.
On 1 October, a Symposium on Health, Social Inclusion and Sports took place in Rome, Italy, in conjunction with the 2006 Special Olympics European Youth Games. You can read about the Symposium and other events at the Youth Games in the Regional Games section of the Special Olympics Web site.
Later in October, Healthy Athletes was at the 2006 Special Olympics Shanghai Invitational Games, which served as a “dress rehearsal” for the 2007 World Summer Games that will held in that City.
Also in this issue, Dr. Abidin Hakan Tuncer, who started the Healthy Athletes program in Turkey, is “In the Spotlight.”
We hope you enjoy this issue of the Healthy Athletes newsletter and welcome your stories for future issues. Thank you for all you do to make Healthy Athletes a success.
Sandra S. Block OD, MEd.
Editor, Healthy Athletes Update
sblock@ico.edu |
