Everything You Need To Know About The 2015 Special Olympics

By Christy Flom on June 22, 2015

After taking place in PyeongChang, South Korea, two years ago, the summer 2015 Special Olympics will occur July 25 through August 2 in Los Angeles, California.

As someone who never knew a lot about this event that takes place every two years, I was pleasantly surprised at how big this event has become since it was first instituted in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver. Now 47 years later, it is the second largest athletic event behind the World Olympics. The amount of traction the Special Olympics has gained over the past half century is remarkable.

With over 177 different countries participating and 7,000 athletes competing, the Special Olympics is one of the biggest and most publicized events of the summer around the world. In order to create an event of this magnitude, mass numbers of volunteers are required. This summer, there are over 30,000 volunteers helping to orchestrate this empowering event.

According to la2015.org, the Special Olympics’ goal is to “promote equality, acceptance and inclusion for people with intellectual disabilities around the world.” This acceptance and inclusion are seen through the varying 27 competitions that will take place throughout the seven days.

Viewers will be captivated by the incredible abilities of the athletes in sports like beach volleyball, badminton, kayaking, power lifting, table tennis, and many more, each having their own spotlight moments to inspire audiences.

Image via flickr.com by the Herald Post.

One of the looming questions of this summer’s games is how they will take place in the great city of Los Angeles. The Special Olympics’ need to have the top facilities to house the events in which athletes will participate in posed a problem for the city as they were struggling to find sufficient room to host the games.

In the midst of a majorly populated city, colleges near and around Los Angeles will be highly utilized. UCLA will play a major component in holding events and housing athletes. In addition, the events will be spread out throughout the Los Angeles area with UCLA and Long Beach hosting the largest multitude of events. USC will also be hosting events in their facilities such as aquatics and basketball.

La2015.org also highlights the way these games are meant to unite the world through sports to form a new vision of acceptance for people with intellectual disabilities. All of the unique differences between each of the participating athletes will be celebrated as they prove once again that disabilities do not impede people from living their dreams and striving for a more connected and stronger future.

With President Barack Obama and the First Lady Michelle Obama enacted as honorary co-chairs of the games, there is no doubt this event is going to be exceptional and powerful. Jerry Brown, the Governor of California, and Eric Garcetti the Mayor of Los Angeles are both Honorary Hosts. Making this whole event happen is a Board of Directors that consists of 27 people with a wide variety of skills in business, entertainment, finance and marketing.

Image via flickr.com

The opening ceremony will take place the evening of July 25 in Los Angeles after several events including basketball, football, tennis and bocce. The torch run will begin in Sacramento on July 13 at 10 a.m., with it ending in Los Angeles on July 24 at 7:30 p.m.

If the amazing athletes somehow are not enough to motivate one to watch the games, there are many entertainers who will be making an appearance at the opening ceremony. Headliners for the ceremony include Avril Lavigne, Cody Simpson, and Stevie Wonder. Eva Longoria, Michael Phelps, Yao Ming, and Jimmy Kimmel are also rumored to be making appearances.

While the Special Olympics occur twice as often as the Olympics, the athletes and events remain remarkable. Not only are these games a great way to inspire thousands of youth across the world who have disabilities, they are a major public event that all should watch and support.

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