Special Olympics Team USA

Los Angeles, CA – The world’s largest sports and humanitarian event is coming to the world’s capital for media and entertainment. The Special Olympics International Board of Directors announced today that Los Angeles, California will be the host site for the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games. 

In less than four years, Los Angeles will welcome more than 7000 Special Olympics athletes from 170 nations to compete in 21 Olympic-type sports.  The Special Olympics World Summer Games will return to the United States after 16 years, having last been held in the United States in 1999 in Raleigh, North Carolina. The most recent World Summer Games were the 2011 Games that recently concluded in July in Athens, Greece. The 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games are expected to bring more than a half-million people to the greater Los Angeles area and will be held in summer 2015 (specific dates still to be announced).

“On behalf of our entire Special Olympics movement worldwide, I am thrilled to award our 2015 World Games to Los Angeles,” said Dr. Timothy P. Shriver, Chairman and CEO of Special Olympics. “Bringing our World Games to a city as powerful and prominent on the world stage as Los Angeles will allow our Special Olympics athletes to showcase their talents and demonstrate to the world the best in sports.”

At a press event at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles today a memorandum of agreement was signed by Shriver and Patrick McClenahan, Chairman of the Los Angeles Bid Committee, who now transitions to become the President &CEO of the 2015 Special Olympics World Games Organizing Committee.

“In a city full of movie stars and all-stars, our Special Olympics athletes will be the stars of this show as they demonstrate their skills, courage and joy.  Los Angeles will provide the world stage necessary to create the awareness that leads to increased acceptance and inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities throughout Southern California, the nation and the world,” said McClenahan.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was also in attendance at today’s event and said, “We are thrilled and honored to be selected as the international city to host the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games and look forward to showcasing the remarkable skills and inspiring passion of Special Olympics athletes.” 

Along with Shriver, McClenahan and Villaraigosa, others who gave remarks at today’s Special Olympics press conference included: Loretta Claiborne, Special Olympics Athlete Spokesperson and member of  Special Olympics International Board of Directors Games Committee; Tim Leiweke, President and CEO of AEG; C.L.Max Nikias, President of the University of Southern California; Don Knabe, Los Angeles County Supervisor; and Rafer Johnson, Los Angeles’ own Olympic legend – 1960 Olympic Gold Medalist in the Decathlon – and Founder of Special Olympics Southern California.

The event was co-hosted byDonna DeVarona, Sports Broadcaster and Olympic Swimming Gold Medalist and Co-Chair, Special Olympics International Board of Directors Games Committee and Dustin Plunkett, Special Olympics Southern California athlete, International Global Messenger and member of the Los Angeles 2015 Games Bid Committee.The press event also featured a parade of nearly 20 Olympic legends and 20 Special Olympics athletes. 

Every two years, thousands of Special Olympics athletes worldwide come together to showcase their athletic skills and celebrate the spirit of Special Olympics, which celebrates nearly 50,000 events a year. The first Special Olympics World Games took place in 1968 and since then have evolved into a world-class sporting event, attracting a wide range of sponsors, supporters and media. Alternating between Summer Games and Winter Games, Special Olympics World Games bring public attention to the talents and capabilities of people with intellectual disabilities, helping to change attitudes and break down barriers that can exclude them from the mainstream of the community.

Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011 were held in Greece, and the next Special Olympics World Games will be the 2013 Special Olympics World Winter Games in Korea.  The Special Olympics World Winter Games PyeongChang 2013 will be held from 26 January to 6 February 2013 in PyeongChang, Korea; more information can be found at www.2013SOPOC.org. For more information about Special Olympics World Summer Games Los Angeles 2015 please visit www.specialolympics.org and join the conversation on Twitter with hashtag #LA2015.

The power of the Special Olympics movement would not be possible without generous support from our corporate partners. Global corporate partners include: The Coca-Cola Company, The Procter & Gamble Company, Mattel, Inc. and the Mattel Children’s Foundation, and Hilton Worldwide. Lions Clubs International is also an official global partner of Special Olympics.

About Special Olympics
Special Olympics is an international organization that changes lives through the power of sport by encouraging and empowering people with intellectual disabilities, promoting acceptance for all, and fostering communities of understanding and respect worldwide. Founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the Special Olympics movement has grown from a few hundred athletes to more than 3.7 million athletes in over 170 countries in all regions of the world, providing year-round sports training, athletic competition and other related programs. Special Olympics now takes place every day, changing the lives of people with intellectual disabilities c all over the world to community playgrounds and ball fields in every small neighborhood’s backyard. Special Olympics provides people with intellectual disabilities continuing opportunities to realize their potential, develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, and experience joy and friendship. Visit Special Olympics at www.specialolympics.org. Engage with us on: Twitter @specialolympics; fb.com/specialolympics; youtube.com/specialolympicshq, and specialolympicsblog.wordpress.com.

ESPN Corporate Outreach today announced plans to cover Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011 on two ESPN media entities. The Games are being held June 25 through July 4 in Greece. ESPN3.com will be the exclusive live media home for the opening (Saturday, June 25, 1 – 4 p.m. ET) and closing ceremonies (Monday, July 4, 1 – 4 p.m.) in the United States. 

In addition, throughout the competition, ESPN.com will be providing information and an up-close perspective of this unique and inspiring event, reporting directly from the venues in Athens. The coverage will be featured prominently in ESPN.com’s The Life section (http://espn.go.com/espn/thelife/) and will be promoted throughout the site.  This coverage will be available on ESPN.com as well as ESPN3.com online and via ESPN on Xbox LIVE and on mobile and tablet devices through the Watch ESPN app.

“Special Olympics became ESPN’s first charity of choice in the early 1980s,” said Rosa Gatti, senior vice president, corporate outreach.  “We are delighted to have leaders of these two ESPN entities commit their time and resources to provide coverage of this global event. Team ESPN’s long relationship of volunteering at Special Olympics and Unified Sports programs has been extremely rewarding for our employees and their families.”

The 13^th Special Olympics World Summer Games is the largest sporting event held in the world in 2011 and the first major sporting event in Athens since the Olympics were held there in 2004.  Special Olympics Team USA will be joining 7,000 fellow athletes and teams from 180 nations around the world in Athens, Greece.  Special Olympics athletes of all ability levels will compete in 22 different Olympic-type sports including: aquatics (swimming), athletics (track and field), badminton, basketball, beach volleyball, bocce, bowling, cycling, equestrian, football (soccer), golf, gymnastics, handball, judo, kayaking, powerlifting, roller skating, sailing, softball, table tennis, tennis, volleyball and the Motor Activity Training Program (MATP). Throughout the competition June 25 – July 4, athletes will display their athletic skill, determination and courage to the world, uniting people of all abilities through the power of sport.

About Special Olympics

Special Olympics is an international organization that changes lives through the power of sport by encouraging and empowering people with intellectual disabilities, promoting acceptance for all, and fostering communities of understanding and respect worldwide. Founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the Special Olympics movement has grown from a few hundred athletes to more than 3.7 million athletes in over 170 countries in all regions of the world, providing year-round sports training, athletic competition and other related programs.  Special Olympics provides people with intellectual disabilities continuing opportunities to realize their potential, develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, and experience joy and friendship. Visit Special Olympics at www.specialolympics.org. For information about the upcoming Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011, visit the Games’ official website at www.athens2011.org.

About Team ESPN and Special Olympics

Throughout the years, ESPN has provided volunteers and financial and in-kind contributions to Special Olympics Connecticut and similarly at other office locations.   ESPN is a sponsor of the Unified Sports school-based program in Connecticut.  Unified Sports® is a registered program of Special Olympics that combines approximately equal numbers of athletes with and without intellectual disabilities on sports teams for training and competition. All Unified Sports players, both athletes and special partners, are of similar age and matched sport skill ability. Unified Sports teams are placed in competitive divisions based on their skill abilities, ranging from training divisions (with a skill-learning focus) to high level competition.  

About ESPN3.com

ESPN3.com is ESPN’s live sports broadband network, a 24/7 online destination that delivers thousands of live, global sports events annually. It is currently available at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or cable TV video subscription from an affiliated service provider.  It is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers connected to on-campus educational networks and on-base military networks.

P&G launches “Thank You Mom” Facebook page where families across the U.S. can help boost P&G’s contribution by showing their support for Special Olympics Team USA

Mary Lou Retton, 1984 Olympic gymnastics gold medalist, teams up with P&G in support of Special Olympics Team USA                               

Procter & Gamble, proud partner of Special Olympics for thirty-one years, announced today a program that honors Special Olympics moms by supporting their sons and daughters with a gift to Special Olympics of $250,000 to support local programs and services.

P&G is also making it possible for people to make a difference in the lives of Special Olympics Team USA athletes in their journey to the upcoming Special Olympics World Summer Games 2011 in Athens, Greece by visiting P&G’s Thank You Mom Facebook page at www.facebook.com/thankyoumom. For every visitor that “likes,’ shares or leaves a comment on the page, P&G will donate $1 to support Special Olympics Team USA’s journey to Athens up to an additional $250,000. The site will also feature information about Special Olympics, heartfelt stories from the moms of Special Olympics Team USA athletes and an opportunity to create a unique family tribute video. 

“As the ‘Proud Sponsor of Moms’ P&G’s goal is to celebrate moms and help improve their lives in meaningful ways every day,” said Kirk Perry, Vice President, North America. “Special Olympics has been an important part of the P&G family since 1980 and we want to celebrate the dedication of Special Olympics moms and caregivers by helping to ensure their children are able to experience what is sure to be one of the proudest and most exciting events of their lives.”

More than 315 Special Olympics Team USA athletes will travel to Athens for Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011 June 25-July 4, to compete amongst more than 7,000 athletes from around the world. In the eyes of moms and caregivers of Special Olympics Team USA athletes, it’s an opportunity for their children to experience a new level of independence and inclusion. Special Olympics was founded by the late Eunice Kennedy Shriver in 1968 with the goal of helping persons with intellectual disabilities develop self-esteem through the power of sports. This year marks the 31^st anniversary of P&G’s partnership with Special Olympics – one of the longest continuous consumer products cause marketing relationships in the United States.

“We are thrilled to have a corporate partner like P&G who has supported our organization for so many years,” said Timothy Shriver, Chairman and CEO of Special Olympics. “Special Olympics moms are the most amazing, determined and dedicated people I know. They fight every day for their children. They fight for health care. They fight for education. They fight for acceptance. They fight for the right to just hear from others, ‘Your kid is terrific.’ ”

In addition to supporting Special Olympics Team USA athletes on their journey to Athens, P&G is ensuring that moms and caregivers of Special Olympics athletes who will not be in Greece for World Games – along with moms and families across the country – will have the opportunity to see these athletes compete in Athens via videos of World Games events on the Thank You Mom Facebook page.

Inspirational Stories

P&G has launched the “What I See” advertising campaign inspired by Special Olympics moms and the organization’s commitment to dignity, acceptance and respect for all individuals. The campaign focuses on Special Olympics Team USA athlete Molly Hincka and the faith her mom Kerry has in her. Doctors predicted Molly would never walk or talk, but Kerry saw endless possibilities of what her daughter could achieve. Molly will be proudly representing the United States at Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011, competing in several track and field events.

Mary Lou Retton, 1984 Olympic gymnastics gold medalist and Special Olympics supporter, has teamed up with P&G and Special Olympics to help spread the word about the importance of supporting Special Olympics families and motivate people across the country to get involved. Retton, a longtime Special Olympics supporter, has also created her own “What I See” video tribute to her family, which can be viewed on www.facebook.com/thankyoumom.

“I’m honored to be a part of the P&G and Special Olympics partnership,” said Retton. “As a mom and a former Olympic athlete, I know the sacrifices moms make for their children to reach their full potential, despite the ‘nos, can’ts and shouldn’ts’ they heard from doctors, schools and even other mothers.”

About Procter & Gamble
Four billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world. The company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Gain®, Pringles®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun® and Fusion®. The P&G community includes approximately 135,000 employees working in about 80 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

About Special Olympics
Special Olympics is an international organization that changes lives by encouraging and empowering people with intellectual disabilities, promoting acceptance for all, and fostering communities of understanding and respect worldwide. Founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the Special Olympics movement has grown from a few hundred athletes to nearly 3.5 million athletes in over 170 countries in all regions of the world, providing year-round sports training, athletic competition health screenings, and other related programs.  Special Olympics now takes place every day, changing the lives of people with intellectual disabilities in all regions of the world and in community playgrounds and ball fields in every small neighborhood’s backyard.  Special Olympics provide people with intellectual disabilities continuing opportunities to realize their potential, develop physical fitness, and demonstrate courage and experience joy and friendship. Visit Special Olympics at www.specialolympics.org.

Training Camp March 27-31 Preparation For Competition on the World’s Stage

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – As Special Olympics athletes around the world prepare for the largest and most inspiring sporting event of 2011 – the Special Olympics World Summer Games ATHENS 2011 – athletes and coaches comprising Special Olympics Team USA are heading to San Diego State University and nearby venues for a training camp March 27-31.

For Special Olympics Team USA – consisting of 317 athletes and 126 coaches including management team members – this training camp is the first time many of the athletes will unite with their Special Olympics World Summer Games coach and other athletes from all over the nation who will be joining them on their trip to Athens. The camp will offer a variety of coaches meetings and sport-specific training for athletes in athletics, aquatics, basketball, bocce, bowling, bicycling, equestrian, golf, gymnastics, kayaking, powerlifting, sailing, soccer, softball, tennis and volleyball.

Special Olympics athletes and coaches will participate in a variety of unifying and team-building activities during their time in San Diego. Featured events for the camp include an Opening Ceremony featuring Olympic decathlete and founder of Special Olympics Southern California Rafer Johnson from 6-9 p.m. Sunday, March 27, at the Hotel Crown Plaza, and Closing Ceremony/Greek Night featuring Olympic softball player Amanda Freed from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday, March 30, also at the Hotel Crown Plaza. Also during camp, athletes from Special Olympics Team USA will be fitted for their uniforms and have sport-specific photos taken.

Special thanks go to Champion, the official performance apparel supplier of Special Olympics Team USA. Other sponsors are P&G, the American Federation of Teachers and MTM Recognition. Loudmouth is a product supplier of Special Olympics Team USA’s golf team.

This is the 13th Special Olympics World Summer Games, uniting 7,000 Special Olympics athletes from 180 nations to compete in 22 Olympic-type sports June 25-July 4. The 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games will be the milestone event of a long-lasting movement, founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, to create a world that is not dominated by those who are excluded but by those who are included. In Athens, the birthplace of modern sport, where the true values of competition were born, the talents and skills of Special Olympics athletes will remind us what the World Games are really about, where all participants are winners in their struggle for respect, inclusion and unity.

Every two years, thousands of Special Olympics athletes worldwide come together to showcase their athletic skills and celebrate the spirit of Special Olympics. Alternating between Summer Games and Winter Games, Special Olympics World Games bring public attention to the talents and capabilities of people with intellectual disabilities, helping to change attitudes and break down barriers that excluded them from the mainstream of the community.

For more information on Special Olympics Team USA, visit http://www.specialolympicsteamusa.org or find additional information at the Special Olympics World Summer Games official website: http://www.athens2011.org/en/index.asp.

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 For more information on the camp, contact

Michele Henson at 309-888-2573 or Mandi Steward at 573-635-1660 by March 25.

To line up an interview with your local California athletes during camp,

please call Michele Henson at 309-826-1120 or Mandi Steward at 573-286-4613.

ATHENS, Greece – As part of its ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion, Cisco announced Feb. 14 that it will be a sponsor at the Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011.

Special Olympics is a non-profit organization founded in 1968. From then on until today, Special Olympics have evolved to a Global Movement that offers the opportunity to 3.1 million athletes with intellectual disabilities from 185 countries, to reinforce their self-esteem, to discover their special abilities, and in this way become active and useful members of their societies.

This year, Cisco will build a comprehensive, robust and highly secure information technology platform based on its Borderless Network Architecture that will empower collaboration across the Games’ stadiums, host towns and working teams. The Cisco Unified Computing System^TM will be used to deliver end-to-end optimization to both physical and virtualized data centers.

Highlights

• Cisco is providing the technologies required to build a robust and a highly secure Borderless Network which will be used as a platform for a data center solution based on the Cisco Unified Computing System. Cisco will be deploying switching, routing, security, and wireless access solutions
• Cisco Unified Communications solutions will connect dispersed buildings and campuses in Athens and Nicosia, the main host towns of the Games via more than 700 Cisco Unified IP phones. Additionally, Cisco TelePresence® rooms will be used to facilitate collaboration between the teams in these two cities.
• The Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011 will be held in Athens, Greece, from June 25 to July 4, 2011, with the participation of 7,500 Special Olympics athletes from 185 nations, 2,500 coaches, 3,000 referees, 40,000 family members, and 3,000 media representatives globally.
• In the games held every year by the Special Olympics movement in the world, offering the opportunity to take part in more than 30 Olympic-type summer and winter events, participate 550,000 athletes from the US, 500,000 from Europe, 700,000 from China, and 410,000 from India. In Greece, the athletes who participate in Special Olympics events reach 12,000.

Supporting Quotes

• Joanna Despotopoulou, President of the Organizing Committee of Special Olympics World Summer Games ATHENS 2011:

“February 14th is a very special day for Special Olympics Hellas. Today in 1987 the Founding Act of the Public Beneficial Athletic, Educational, non Profit Association, titled Special Olympics International – Hellas, was signed. After 24 years of constant effort we can say with certainty that all of us, companions in this wonderful journey, receive much more than we offer. Today we are twice as happy for welcoming Cisco in our family of Proud Sponsors of the Special Olympics World Summer Games ATHENS 2011. Cisco is a company with huge experience in industry, worthy of its international prestige and reputation. Totally confident in the above, we rely on Cisco’s valuable services for the creation of an integrated and reliable technological environment, where host cities, data centers and contributing to the organization members will communicate. We would like to thank Cisco for sharing the same values and merits for a world that respects Diversity”.

• Jordi Botifoll, vice president, Mediterranean Geography, Cisco:

“At Cisco, we are committed to fully embracing the human network in all its multiplicity, fostering innovation and talent. In doing so, we are able to better serve our customers and engage with our partners in the worldwide marketplace with the strength of working together. The Special Olympics Games in Athens sets an excellent example of a diverse, inclusive human network, and we are proud to serve as a sponsor for the upcoming games.”

• Odysseas Charalambous, general manager, Greece, Cyprus and Malta, Cisco:

“Inclusion is not just about recognizing diversity, it is about recognizing and appreciating the value that people can bring to a team. Inclusion is about all the wonderful things we can do, as long as we are together. Cisco’s involvement to this athletic event of global magnitude makes me really proud.”

Happy New Year to everyone!  We begin 2011 with some exciting news for Special Olympics North America. 

One of Special Olympics longtime corporate partners of more than 30 years, Procter & Gamble, has brought us an incredible opportunity to be the official charitable partner of this year’s People’s Choice Awards.  The People’s Choice Awards airs LIVE on national television, this Wednesday night, Jan. 5, on CBS at 9:00 PM EST / 8:00 PM Central. 

This show will be seen by millions of viewers across the country and we need your help to ask people to tune-in and watch as there will be an in-show moment dedicated to Special Olympics encouraging viewers to donate and support Special Olympics Team USA as they prepare to compete in the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2011 in Athens, Greece. 

For the first-time ever we will have a text-to-give mobile code that will be shared live during the show and presented on-stage by Special Olympics ambassador, actress Vanessa Williams. She will ask viewers to text the word “fan,” that’s F-A-N to 85944 to donate $10 to support Special Olympics Team USA.

The People’s Choice Award marketing has issued a press release mentioning Special Olympics’ involvement in the show and the organization will also be featured on their website: http://www.peopleschoice.com during the show. 

Vanessa Williams is scheduled to appear live at approximately 7:45 PM PST / 10:45 PM EST.  We have an opportunity to raise a lot of funds to support Special Olympics Team USA with this great P&G initiative so I appreciate your support. 

Thank you,

Bob Gobrecht
President& Managing Director
Special Olympics North America

Every two years, the world comes together to recognize and honor the abilities of athletes with intellectual disabilities.  Special Olympics World Games alternate between a menu of summer and winter sports. The 2011 World Summer Games will be held in Athens, Greece, the “land of fair play.”

Sportsmanship, Teamwork, Accountability, Integrity, Respect: Team USA’s values represent the way we believe and act as a team. They define the beliefs and behaviors of the Team USA management team, coaching staff, and athletes as we represent all programs across the United States.  We follow these values at all times, regardless of the venue or situation.

Team USA will consist of about 300 athletes from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Athletes will compete in Athletics, Aquatics, Bocce, Bowling, Canoeing, Cycling, Equestrian, Golf, Gymnastics, Powerlifting, Sailing, Tennis, Basketball, Soccer, Softball and Volleyball. They will be accompanied by about 120 coaches and support staff who represent 39 states.

Athletes will be chosen by their home states this summer. Before the World Games, they will have the opportunity to meet, train and bond as a team at the Team USA Training Camp in San Diego March 27 – 31, 2011.

In addition to competing in the city of the world’s first-ever Olympics, athletes will participate in the Host Town program. Delegations from around the world will be hosted for four days throughout the 13 regions of Greece prior to their arrival in Athens for the Games. Through a series of sporting, cultural and artistic events, athletes will have the opportunity to adapt to a new environment, to experience the Greek culture, to enjoy the natural beauty and traditional cuisine, as well as train before the Games.

During the World Games, athletes can improve their health and fitness through six Healthy Athletes disciplines: Fit Feet, FUNFitness, Healthy Hearing, Health Promotion, Opening Eyes and Special Smiles. Established in 1996, the program is designed to enhance athletes’ ability to train and compete in Special Olympics. A Global Youth Summit, School Enrichment Program, Family Forum and Global Policy Summit will also coincide with the 2011 World Games. The traditional Opening Ceremonies and Special Olympics Festival will round out the special activities planned for the athletes.

Team USA will depart for Host Town on June 19, 2011, and will return to the United States on July 5, 2011.

The Emblem of the Special Olympics World Summer Games ATHENS 2011 is a radiant sun, the source of life that underlines the excellence and power of the athlete that takes part in the Games. Excellence is depicted in the olive branch and power in the spiral form in the center of the sun. The colors reflect the Greek landscape and project emotions like passion for life in the warm red, optimism in the orange, determination in the blue, freedom in the light blue and hope in the green.

The Greek Organizing Committee of the Athens 2011 Special Olympics officially launched on Tuesday the Games’ mascot in a press conference held at Zappeion, close to the Panathinaikon Stadium, where the modern Olympic Games were revived in 1896.

A radiant sun named Apollon after the God of Sun in ancient Greek mythology invites all the citizens of the world to join the “Wonderful Winning World” as is the title of the music theme of the 13th Special Olympics World Summer Games.

“I am in” is the official slogan of the Games, which will be held from June 25 to July 4, 2011 with the participation of 7,500 athletes from 185 countries and regions with intellectual disabilities and special abilities.

As for the emblem of the Games, which was also presented on Tuesday, it consists of the International Symbol of the Special Olympics, the Logotype “World Summer Games ATHENS 2011” and the sun.

The sun was chosen as “a source of life that underlines the excellence and power of the athlete who takes part in the Games,” said Joanna Despotopoulou, President of the Greek Organizing Committee of the 2011 Athens Special Olympics.

“Excellence is depicted in the olive branch and power in the spiral form in the center of the sun. The colors reflect the Greek landscape and project emotions like passion for life in the warm red, optimism in the orange, determination in the blue, freedom in the light blue and hope in the green,” he added.

Expressing admiration for the previous Special Olympics hosted in Shanghai two years ago the head of GOC remembered that “we took the Games flag from our Chinese friends in a spectacular closing ceremony.”

With a limited budget of 69 million euros, Athens and Greece hope to do the best to welcome in a year and a half the athletes, their coaches, their families and friends, celebrities and world leaders who support the causes of the Special Olympics.

On behalf of the Greek government, Panos Beglitis, National Defence Alternate Minister, expressed his determination that “Athens and Greece will host most successful Games for one more time, as it happened five years ago when our country hosted the Olympic Games.”

“The important thing to keep in mind is that Special Olympics is not just about people with special needs and abilities, but about all of us, it’s about opening the eyes of our society” said Peter Wheeler, second vice president of the Special Olympics International Committee.