The largest sports event for people with mental and multiple disabilities is taking place in Germany for the first time: the Special Olympics World Games. We look at the event and what it should achieve in the long term.
The idea for the Special Olympics World Games came about in 1963 at an international youth camp in the USA. The movement was founded by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of former US President John F. Kennedy. Both had a mentally challenged sister, Rosemary Kennedy.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver found a life purpose in working for more rights and acceptance for people with intellectual disabilities. In 1968 the first Special Olympics World Games took place in Chicago with several thousand athletes.
The 16th edition of the Special Olympics World Games, which has taken place every four years since 1975, is now being held in Berlin. In 2003, the Irish capital Dublin hosted the event outside of the United States for the first time.
Christiane Krajewski, President of Special Olympics Germany, and the included football coach Fritz Quien talk about the great anticipation of the athletes before the World Games in the Dlf sports talk. Krajewski describes the event as a lighthouse. This stands for “that we can all do sports together – with or without a handicap, in the local sports club, barrier-free and with the best possible support. That is our goal.”
In this way, athletes should experience more self-determination and also more social participation. The head of the German delegation, Tom Hauthal, said in the Dlf that the perception “of what I’ve been doing for many years has increased enormously in the last few weeks and months. That’s why I’m personally full of anticipation.”
The goal of creating encounters that “put our athletes at the center of society” was part of the bid, Hauthal said. “You always see that creating encounters actually breaks down barriers.”
Hauthal wants to use the Special Olympics World Games “to open the doors a bit in the various areas of life, whether at work, at home, in leisure time, or of course in sport. We want more of our athletes to have the opportunity to do sports in a sports club. There are still many steps to go.”
The Paralympics take place after the Olympic Games. These are the games for athletes with physical disabilities.
At the Special Olympics World Games, people with intellectual disabilities compete. The Special Olympics is a sports movement recognized by the International Olympic Committee.
Yes. In team sports, for example, inclusive teams of people with and without disabilities start. These teams are referred to as “unified teams” in the Special Olympics movement.
“Anyone who sees an inclusive football game at the World Games will soon be asking themselves: ‘Hey, who on the field has a handicap or no handicap?'” says Christiane Krajewski, President of Special Olympics Germany. The boundaries blur when football, handball or hockey players, as well as other teams, move around in one place,” says Krajewski. People with and without intellectual disabilities are equally happy.
The organizers have two target groups: On the one hand, people with mental disabilities. They should be shown the way into the sport. The Special Olympics World Games in Germany should give an impulse to look for opportunities in your own area and to do sports.
Only eight percent of people with intellectual disabilities exercise regularly. This contrasts with about 30 percent of those who are not disabled. “For health reasons, too, it is essential that we get more people with mental disabilities moving,” says Special Olympics Germany President Christiane Krajewski.
The second target group are sports clubs. The Special Olympics World Games in Berlin are intended to help open up more opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities.
Krajewski says they want to address society as a whole: “Perception has already improved significantly. The media also played a relevant role and will continue to do so over the next few days. Politicians have noticed us more and are giving us great support. Both the federal government and the state of Berlin as well as many municipalities throughout Germany, which have welcomed the delegations from all over the world to their cities in the last few days.”
There are very different offers: In schools and some workshops for people with intellectual disabilities there are sports offers. In addition to these offers, the umbrella organization Special Olympics also values inclusive teams in Germany – in which people with and without disabilities do sports together. These teams exist for different sports – but so far only in a few regular sports clubs in Germany. According to their own statements, Special Olympics Germany and its state associations offer 220 events a year throughout the country – including state championships. In addition, in some places there are sports clubs that focus solely on the needs of people with intellectual disabilities, such as disabled sports communities.
Soccer coach Fritz Quien still sees big gaps in the sports system, because it is still very difficult for many athletes with mental disabilities to be accepted into regular clubs. As a teacher at a special school for children and young people, he has a football club with 18 boys and girls: “They would all like to play in a club – in this case football. But unfortunately only one has the opportunity, all others do not have this opportunity. And of course that is disappointing.”
Quien does not see the solution in the founding of new disabled sports clubs, but in existing clubs: “In my view, the clubs that now train children and young people should also be aware of their responsibility and also take on children, young people and adults with disabilities. I still see big deficits there.” Quien is hoping for more openness after the World Games. But he also warns that coaches in sports clubs should be trained – so that concerns don’t prevail in the end.
In many places there is still a lack of inclusive sports offers from clubs. In some – especially rural – regions it is difficult to find sports clubs nearby. Proximity to the place of residence or work is important, however, because long journeys on public transport are not always easy for people with mental disabilities to cope with. In addition, for capacity reasons, it is difficult for volunteers to carry out tasks such as mobility training for such trips. Some volunteers in disabled sports describe their overload when it comes to inclusion tasks.
Christiane Krajewski, President of Special Olympics Germany, also sees the reasons for the deficits in German history: an entire generation of people with mental disabilities was said to have been killed by the Nazis. Afterwards there were rather large, closed facilities. For this reason, there is still no inclusive sport in many communities.
In Germany, a law is intended to improve the self-determination and participation of people with disabilities. The last reform stage of the Federal Participation Act will come into force in 2023.