Videos

Today, on International Youth Day, Special Olympics is helping to highlight youth leaders with and without intellectual disabilities who are leading for global action today and tomorrow for a more inclusive world. August 12 was declared International Youth Day by the U.N. in 1999 to celebrate the voices and engagement of young people who are working to create change in their communities, nations and the world.

International Youth Day recognizes youth engagement for global action. To celebrate, some young people who took part in the Special Olympics Middle East/North Africa Youth Leadership Summit 2020 share the impact it had on them and their vision for a more inclusive world!

Rajah, que ejerce como voluntaria el rol de Directora Nacional de Olimpiadas Especiales Senegal, hizo que su programa creciera de 6 atletas a más de 3,000, a través de alianzas estratégicas con todos los sectores. ¡Conoce más sobre sus esfuerzos por cambiar las reglas del juego en Senegal!

In 2018, I was contacted by the self-advocacy organization Empower Us; they gave me the opportunity to travel to the UK that same year, and in 2019, to New York, to address the United Nations on the importance of sports, culture and hobbies for people with disabilities. I have also traveled to Bolivia, Mexico and Colombia to talk about my life experiences.Full Story

Though singer-songwriter Erika Ender has only been a Special Olympics Global Ambassador for two years, this Panama native has supported athletes at events globally.

As a Special Olympics Global Ambassador and member of Special Olympics Board of Directors, Dikembe Mutombo, NBA legend, has brought the movement to places it had never been. In his home country of the Democratic Republic of Congo, he founded the Special Olympics Congo program and built four homes for people with intellectual disabilities.

Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® builds on Special Olympics’ values, principles, practices, experiences and impacts to shape a generation that welcomes everyone.

Not even a global pandemic could stop Special Olympics Netherlands from having the time of their lives at their first ever online National Games: Unified Moves! Even though health concerns and quarantine restrictions forced the team to cancel the traditional event, Special Olympics Netherlands and Coca-Cola welcomed everyone to join a brilliant online event from the safety of their own homes!

Philippines athlete "AJ" was living alone, malnourished, without care or supervision in an abandoned home during the quarantine lockdown; a Special Olympics staffer tracks him down, saving him…just in time. Read more about AJ's story.

No one expected Deran’s inspirational role model to be someone with intellectual disabilities,especially Deran. See how he’s become a force for inclusion!

When Macy was diagnosed with Down syndrome, Special Olympics brought her family hope in a moment of hopelessness. You can do the same for another athlete with intellectual disabilities. Give Now: http://bit.ly/macy-soi