The history of the Special Olympics
Adapted from specialolympics . org
The inaugural Special Olympics were held on July 20 , 1968 , at Soldier Field in Chicago , Illinois . There were over 200 events with roughly 1,000 athletes competing from 26 U . S . states and Canadian provinces .
According to the Special Olympics website , during those inaugural games , a 17-year-old athlete named James opened the ceremonies by carrying the torch and lighting a 45-foot flame in honor of John F . Kennedy .
Two thousand balloons were then released into the sky as Eunice Kennedy Shriver walked to the podium to gave the introductory speech .
Still used today in the opening of Special Olympic Games are the words Shriver spoke : “ Let me win , but if I cannot win let me be brave in the attempt .” But getting to that historic day was no easy feat . President John F . Kennedy and his family — primarily his sister Eunice — can be credited with not only starting the Special Olympic Games , but also for changing the way the United States viewed those with mental impairments .
In 1946 the Kennedy family established the Joseph P . Kennedy Jr . Foundation with a primary focus on those with special needs and disabilities .
Though it wasn ’ t disclosed until many years later , Rosemary Kennedy , one of John F . Kennedy ’ s four sisters , was mentally impaired and that is what sparked the family ’ s vision for change .
After growing up a bit behind her siblings , Rosemary still participated in all family outings and events ; however , as she grew older she seemed to stop progressing and became more violent with both physical and verbal outbursts . Not knowing how to help his daughter — medication hasn ’ t been introduced yet — her father authorized a lobotomy on Rosemary in 1940 when she was 23 years old .
A new procedure at the time , a lobotomy is when a hole is drilled into the patient ’ s skull so that the connection between the frontal lobe and the thalamus , which processes and regulates emotion , can be severed . This procedure was thought to cure mental illness as it made those who had undergone it docile and quiet . The lobotomy left Rosemary permanently incapacitated .
Feeling for her sister ’ s plight , Shriver took Rosemary on and cared for her the remainder of her life . Rosemary passed away in 2005 at the age of 86 .
It was while Shriver cared for her sister that she began a yearly summer camp at her home in Washington D . C . for those with intellectual disabilities .
One of the camp ’ s primary focuses was participation in sports to provide not only physical movement but also a social outlet — something unheard of at that time for people with these conditions .
As Shriver focused on growing her summer camp her brother , John F . Kennedy , won the race for the presidency .
During the brief time he was in office , President Kennedy put into motion a proclamation that research into intellectual disabilities and how to properly care for those individuals would become a national priority .
The announcement was given during a news conference on October 11 , 1961 , and the news was spread nationwide . This would be the first time in U . S . history that concrete steps were taken to better the lives of those with mental disabilities . The President was assassinated roughly two years later . Shriver would carry on as director of the her family ’ s foundation and continued to push for the advancement of care for those with special needs .
The first time Shriver suggested a large scale sports program specifically designed for those with mental impairments was in April of 1964 during a two-day conference held by the Kennedy Foundation .
It would take the next four years and a plethora of organizational meetings and slowly saving funds to officially begin the games .
But , after those inaugural games in 1968 , the Special Olympics was officially incorporated .
The announcement was made to the nation on December 2 , 1968 : The Special Olympics would mimic the Olympics and games would occur every two years , alternating between winter and summer sports .
Since then , the games have grown significantly , with the most recent being held in Berlin , Germany , in 2023 . Some 6,500 athletes from 176 programs competed in those games .
As Chicago Major Richard J . Daley said to Shriver during those inaugural Special Olympics : “ The world will never be the same after this .”
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