USA Games

From June 20 – 26, the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games will bring nearly 3,000 athletes and 1,500 coaches from all 50 states to Minneapolis to compete across 16 Olympic-type team and individual sports. ESPN will provide 48 hours of live competition coverage on ESPN+ through the ESPN App, featuring events including athletics, swimming, powerlifting and flag football, along with ABC preview and review programming.

For one week in June, Special Olympics athletes from across the United States will gather in Minneapolis, Minnesota for the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games. While the athletes will get most of the spotlight, and rightfully so, for their athletic achievements, there’s another distinct group of indivdiuals with intellectual disabilities coming to the USA Games.

Only a handful of Special Olympics athletes have had the opportunity to meet the founder of Special Olympics, Eunice Kennedy Shriver. Even fewer athletes had the opportunity to compete in her backyard the year before Special Olympics even began. Luckily, for Tim Gowen, he was able to do both.

Stefanie Curtis had a different path to Special Olympics. Growing up in Berlin, Germany, there was no local programming for Special Olympics, so she found other ways to stay active as an adolescent.

The first in a series of stories from FanSided about the power and impact of Special Olympics Coaches on athletes and the community.

The Make Every Race Count campaign was created to help swimmers turn their failure into success.

In the crowd, family, friends, and fans cheer loudly because Jeff Greene has arrived at the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games.

[Nashville, TN, USA – 29 October 2025] Nashville will proudly serve as the host city for the 2034 Special Olympics USA Games. The bid committee and Special Olympics North America announced the selection and signed a letter of agreement during a ceremony at Bridgestone Arena.

The following is an article by FanSided, who interviewed Christy Sovereign, the CEO of the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games on her involvement with Special Olympics and the preparation of the Games.

Imagine lining up in front of 30,000 fans in Cessna Stadium to run a 15-second race. Most people who’ve grown up playing sports will never have the chance to experience anything like that.