Nadeem, 19, and Ashrakat, 22, are sibling Youth Leaders from Egypt. Four years ago, they both joined Special Olympics Egypt; Nadeem participated as an athlete and Ashrakat as a volunteer. The siblings contributed to many events and activities of social integration between people with and without intellectual disabilities.

They were inspired by the culture of acceptance at Special Olympics to take on more responsibility and become Youth Leaders. Nadeem joined the Athletes Leaders Intervention Council, and even presented at the conference in 2021 in front of more than 200 individuals, including athletes, Youth Leaders, coaches, and leadership experts!

During this 9-month long project, Nadeem and Ashrakat plan to increase awareness of inclusion in their community and with youth in particular. They will organize awareness meetings with school youth in the community, organize Unified Sports meetings with their peers in the community, and hold workshops for community members to become ambassadors for Special Olympics Egypt.

Nadeem and Ashrakat’s goal is to bring more people into the Special Olympics family. Through their project they plan to recruit 15 new Youth Leaders, 2 new Unified Schools, 1 new Unified Champion School, 1 new Unified Sports Club, and engage over 200 people in person. Nadeem and Ashrakat hope that their project will have a huge impact on their community, and that many schools join in by promoting inclusion and acceptance for future generations.