In the coming year, the Special Olympics World Games will take place in Berlin. The German team will consist of 414 athletes. They were officially presented on Monday (November 7th, 2022).
414 athletes will represent the Team Special Olympics Germany (TeamSOD) at the Special Olympics World Games next year in Berlin. On Monday, the national committee at the Adidas Sports Base on Berlin’s Schleusenufer announced the names of the athletes who will be wearing the German colors at the event from June 17th to June 25th, 2023.
“With the Special Olympics Germany team, we are bringing great representatives to the start at the 2023 World Games! The athletes and their unified partners will give their best in sport and represent our country in a worthy manner with their performance and appearance,” said Christiane Krajewski, President of Special Olympics Germany.
Dennis Mellentin (l) and Sven Albrecht present the logo of the 2023 World Games in the Berlin Olympic Stadium.
190 delegations are expected
252 men and 162 women will start in 25 sports. Most athletes are involved in team sports such as football, handball, basketball and futsal. There are also 32 active athletes and 25 swimmers. Boccia and bowling are also on the program at the World Games. The athletes will be accompanied by 128 coaches and 31 other members of the delegation, making them the largest of the 190 delegations expected to attend the World Games.
TeamSOD for the Special Olympics World Games 2023
A highlight: Unified competitions
There are also so-called unified competitions in the sports of table tennis, beach volleyball, tennis and sailing, in which people with disabilities and people without disabilities form teams together. The team includes 58 Unified Partners. “Unified is very special. We stand side by side on the record and can only be successful as a team. I can help Katrin to develop further through sport and also go through her life with self-confidence,” says Sina Schellenberger, Unified Partner Thuringia.
