The mission of Special Olympics Colorado is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendships with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.
It all began in the 1950s and early 1960s with the Special Olympics International founder, Eunice Kennedy Shriver. She believed that if people with intellectual disabilities were given the same opportunities and experiences as everyone else, they could accomplish far more than anyone ever thought possible.
She put that vision into action in 1962 by inviting young people with intellectual disabilities to a summer day camp she hosted in her backyard called "Camp Shriver." Throughout the 1960s, Eunice Kennedy Shriver continued her pioneering work; both as the driving force behind President John F. Kennedy's White House panel on people with intellectual disabilities and as the director of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation.
Her vision and drive for justice eventually grew into the Special Olympics movement. In July 1968, the first International Special Olympics Games were held in Chicago, Illinois, USA. A thousand people with intellectual disabilities from 26 U.S. states and Canada competed in track and field, swimming and floor hockey.
Today Special Olympics International is a global movement that serves more than 5 million people with intellectual disabilities in more than 170 countries.
Special Olympics Colorado held its first event, Summer Games, at Aurora Hinkley High School in 1969. Four hundred athletes participated in a one-day track and field meet.
Today Special Olympics Colorado provides more than 100 opportunities for athletes to train and compete each year in 20 sports for individuals ages 2 and up. Special Olympics Colorado serves more than 21,000 athletes with the support of 2,500+ coaches and 9,000+ volunteers.
Building an Inclusive World
Today Special Olympics International is a global movement that serves more than 5 million people with intellectual disabilities in more than 170 countries.
Special Olympics Colorado is one of 52 state chapters (2 in California and Illinois) in the U.S. sanctioned by Special Olympics North America and Special Olympics International. Special Olympics Colorado is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
Local Programs work under Special Olympics Colorado and directly serve athletes in the local community by providing training programs and practice sessions for various Special Olympics sports.
The Southsiders Program is one of several local Special Olympics Colorado programs and provides athletes in Englewood and surrounding communities an opportunity to train and compete in Special Olympics sports.
