Special Olympics

Eunice Kennedy Shriver Legacy to be Honored Globally On September 25th

Monday, 09 August 2010 21:35

One year ago this Wednesday, August 11th, the visionary Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Special Olympics International founder, Best Buddies International board member, and champion of all people with intellectual disabilities passed away. On the anniversary of her passing, Special Olympics, Best Buddies and people across the world join in celebration of her life and legacy and look towards the first-ever "Eunice Kennedy Shriver Day" (EKS Day) on September 25th which will promote a global call for people to commit actions of inclusion, acceptance and unity for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver devoted her life to fighting for the rights of those with intellectual disabilities. She believed everyone deserves respect. She opened her home, she coached and above all, she was a friend. She demonstrated an indomitable spirit in action. The Eunice Kennedy Shriver Day message calls for people to continue these acts of inclusion for those with intellectual disabilities, in essence to "play on" Mrs. Shriver's legacy. The fourth Saturday of September will be an annual event to celebrate her life and impact and to share her story to inspire new fans to action and unifying communities around the world.

Inaugural Special Olympics Unity Cup a huge success

Saturday, 10 July 2010 16:13

On Saturday afternoon the Coca-Cola Company together with Special Olympics proudly shared in a historic moment as 16 Special Olympics athletes, football legends and celebrities took to the pitch at Cape Town Stadium for the inaugural Special Olympics Unity Cup Presented by Coca-Cola, held just prior to the Germany vs. Argentina FIFA World Cup quarterfinal match.

Keeping with the theme of "unity" the match fittingly ended in a 2-2 draw. The two teams - named "Special Stars" and "Happiness United" - enjoyed a 20-minute match on the FIFA World Cup stadium pitch, which both Coca-Cola and Special Olympics executives hailed as the beginning of an incredible journey together.

Celebrities and Footballers gather for Special Olympics Unity Cup

Sunday, 13 June 2010 15:22

Yesterday, key members of the Unity Cup presented by Coca-Cola joined for a photo opportunity as part of Special Olympics Global Congress that is currently being held in Marrakech to celebrate this roster of celebrities and global football legends.

Those members included executives Timothy P. Shriver, Special Olympics Chairman & CEO and Muhtar Kent, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The Coca-Cola Company and SpeciaI Olympics International board member; as well as Unity Cup participants Ben Haack, Special Olympics' Australia athlete and Clarence Seedorf, global footballer of AC Milan.

India end Special Olympics on a high

Sunday, 15 February 2009 00:00 Arjun Wadhwa

The Alpine Skiing contingent led by Megha ensured that the final day of competition in the Special Olympics World Winter games ended well for India, as the 14-year old from Himachal won her third gold medal of the games, this time in the Novice Slalom run.

Megha was always the favourite to win the event after racking up easy wins in the Giant Slalom and the Super Giant Slalom a few days ago. The youngster set a breathtaking pace, completing the course in 49.12 seconds in her first run, and though she slacked off in her second run, taking over a minute to complete it, Megha just about managed to finish a second ahead of Lea Kranjc who put in a combined time ofÃ‚Â 1 minute and 50 seconds to win her third straight

Indian Medalists Disqualified

Friday, 13 February 2009 18:20 Arjun Wadhwa

On a sad day for Indian sport, especially keeping in mind the spirit of the Special Olympics, two medals were stripped from Indian athletes under the Honest Effort ruling, which has lead to the disqualification of their scores from Thursday's competition.

Parth Malhotra and Pinky Sunil who won Gold and Bronze respectively in the Snowshoeing 50 meters dash in their respective gender categories were disqualified after their times improved by more than the permitted 15% from their preliminary divisioning time for that leg of the competition.

In the divisioning process, all the athletes for a particular sport compete against the clock to determin