Women’s History Month is a time to celebrate the remarkable achievements of women throughout history who have shaped our past and are shaping our future.
For decades, women with and without intellectual disabilities were too often left on the sidelines. Today that reality is changing. Since Eunice Kennedy Shriver founded Special Olympics, women have been at the heart of the movement, and expanding equal access to sport has remained a priority. The increased visibility of female athletes on the world stage means that girls and women with intellectual disabilities do not have to look far to see someone like themselves competing and leading.
Special Olympics has been steadily moving toward achieving a 50:50 gender balance among competing athletes in the World Games. Exactly one year ago, in March 2025, the world came together in Turin, Italy for the Special Olympics World Winter Games where 45.61 percent of athletes and Unified partners were female. This represented a 14 percentage point increase in female participation compared to the 2017 World Winter Games in Austria.
With each World Games, Special Olympics moves closer to equal gender representation across all sports. The 2023 World Games in Berlin celebrated 48 percent female athletes, and the organizing committee for the 2027 World Games in Santiago, Chile, is working to reach 50:50 participation for the first time.
This progress is not limited to competition. Across the movement, women lead as coaches, officials, volunteers, board members, and staff. Female athlete leaders speak on global stages. Unified partners advocate for inclusion in their schools and communities. Mothers, sisters, and mentors strengthen our movement that reaches more than 200 countries around the world.
Join us this Women’s History Month in celebrating their stories and recognizing both how far we have come and the responsibility we carry forward.
