The following overview is designed to provide you with "Special Olympics at a Glance." Additional detailed information about Special Olympics is available in our About Us section and throughout this Web site. Special Olympics Mission To provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities by giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy, and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills, and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community. Goals Worldwide growth in the number of athletes from 2 million to 3 million by 2010; promote global athlete leadership and dedicate the movement to empowerment and dignity, not to charity; change attitudes around the world about people with intellectual disabilities to emphasize potential, ability and acceptance.   How Special Olympics Began Eunice Kennedy Shriver organized the First International Special Olympics Games at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois, USA, in 1968. The concept was born in the early 1960s when Shriver started a day camp for people with intellectual disabilities. She saw that individuals with intellectual disabilities were far more capable in sports and physical activities than many experts thought. Eligibility Special Olympics athletes must be at least 8 years old (for children with intellectual disabilities ages 2 through 7, see the Special Olympics Families section of this Web site for information on the Young Athletes™ program) and identified by an agency or professional as having one of the following conditions: intellectual disabilities, cognitive delays as measured by formal assessment, or significant learning or vocational problems due to cognitive delay that require, or have required, specially designed instruction.      Special Olympics and the Paralympics are two separate and distinct organizations with specific eligibility requirements. Note the dIfferences between the two. Number of Special Olympics Programs There are more than 200 Programs in more than 180 countries. Special Olympics divides Programs into seven regions: Africa, Asia Pacific, East Asia, Europe/Eurasia, Latin America, Middle East/North Africa and North America. Sports Special Olympics offers 30 Olympic-type sports. Divisioning Athletes are divided into competition divisions based upon their ability, age and sex. Competition divisions are structured so that athletes compete against other athletes of similar ability in equitable divisions. A fair and equitable division is one in which all participants, based on performance records, have a reasonable chance to excel. This definition also applies to team competition. Special Olympics Unified Sports® This initiative, started in 1987, brings together athletes with and without intellectual disabilities of similar age and ability to train and compete on the same teams. Unified Sports fosters the integration of persons with intellectual disabilities into school and community sports programs. World Games Special Olympics World Games are held every two years, alternating between Summer Games and Winter Games. The 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games were held in Shanghai, China, from 2-11 October. The 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games will be held in Boise, Idaho (USA), from 2-13 February. The 2011 World Summer Games will be held in Athens, Greece. Initiatives Special Olympics initiatives enhance the mission of Special Olympics and offer athletes the chance to learn and grow as coaches, officials, spokespeople and leaders; improve athletes' health and fitness; and encourage school-age youth to celebrate differences and break down barriers. Athlete Leadership Programs: Provides opportunities to explore leadership opportunities (other than as a competitor) within Special Olympics, including serving on Boards of Directors, or as spokespersons, coaches, officials, volunteers and donors, among others. Special Olympics Families: Special Olympics offers families a variety of ways to become more supported, connected, honored and knowledgable. Healthy Athletes: The Special Olympics Healthy Athletes® initiative is designed to help athletes improve their health and fitness. Its mission is to improve each athlete's ability to train and compete in Special Olympics. The five disciplines in Special Olympics Healthy Athletes are: Special Smiles® (dental); Special Olympics-Lions Clubs International Opening Eyes® (vision); Healthy Hearing (hearing); FUNfitness (flexibility, strength, balance); and Health Promotion (disease prevention). Special Olympics Get Into It: SO Get Into It® is a service learning curriculum developed to introduce Special Olympics and explain intellectual disabilities to youth and encourage them to become involved in the movement. Law Enforcement Torch Run® for Special Olympics An international series of torch relays run by law enforcement officers, leading up to each state/province's or nation's Special Olympics Summer Games. It is the largest grass-roots fundraiser and public awareness vehicle for Special Olympics. Every two years, law enforcement officers comprise a "Final Leg Team" which carries the Special Olympics "Flame of Hope" into the Opening Ceremonies of the Special Olympics World Games. Christmas Record Grant Program Disburses proceeds from the sales of the A Very Special Christmas series of holiday music albums as grants to Special Olympics Programs for projects that encourage growth, enhance the quality of a Program's services, develop new initiatives or provide creative new ways to advance the Special Olympics movement. Leaders Chairman Timothy Shriver leads a senior management team that includes J. Brady Lum, President and Chief Operating Officer, John Dow, Chief Administrative Officer Regional Growth, and Drake Turrentine, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary, Board of Directors. Headquarters Address Special Olympics 1133 19th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036-3604 USA Headquarters Telephone +1 (202) 628-3630 Toll-free +1 (800) 700-8585