Sport Festival Competition for Parents and Daughters is a youth-led initiative in Madagascar aimed at challenging gender norms and encouraging girls with intellectual disabilities to participate in sports. The project centered on a community festival where parents competed alongside their daughters to promote inclusion, bonding, and awareness.
Youth leaders Kenza Razafindranaivo (a young woman with ID) and Miadana Gracia Roseddy were inspired by the underrepresentation of girls in national Special Olympics tournaments. They wanted to change societal expectations that confine girls to domestic roles by showing families the power of sports to uplift and unite.
The team created and shared a promotional video, mobilized local influencers, and organized a sports competition involving girls with ID and their parents. The event also included public education efforts, extensive outreach on Facebook, and partnerships with local schools and organizations.
The project engaged 32 athletes and 17 peers without ID, trained 31 new youth leaders, expanded programming in 5 schools, and reached over 100,000 people through social media. It also sparked lasting change by encouraging families like Feno’s to embrace inclusion and support their daughters’ participation in sports.
Kenza and Miadana were most proud of seeing joy and transformation in the girls who participated, particularly those new to sports. They credit the event with shifting perceptions, empowering families, and giving girls with ID a platform to grow in confidence and ability.