Athlete Sport Programs for Families and Friends allow athletes to explore opportunities to participate in Special Olympics outside sports. Such participation might come in the form of an athlete serving on the Board of Directors or local organizing committee; or it might find an athlete as a spokesperson, coach or official.
An ALPs program:
Allows athletes self-determination of HOW and in What role they participate in Special Olympics, OR
Puts athletes in meaningful positions of influence and leadership throughout the organizations to help determine policy and set direction, OR
Creates a “culture of welcome” for athletes in leadership positions by providing training for existing leadership as they welcome athletes in their new, expanded roles.
Below are some program initiatives that Special Olympics programs have already started. An ALPs program takes these good ideas and standardizes them so that they can be available to more than just a few athletes.
- Athletes on the Program Board of Directors
- Athletes on Board Committees
- Athletes on Local/Area Committees
- Athletes on a Games Management Team
- Athletes on a Games Evaluation Team
- Global Messenger Training - Athletes as Speakers
- Athlete Congress or Input Councils
- Athlete track at Program’s Leadership Conference
- Athletes as Coaches
- Athletes as Officials
- Athletes as Volunteers
- Athletes as Donors
- Athletes employed by Special Olympics
- Athlete contributors to newsletters
Athlete Sports Programs for Families and Friends Unified Sports® is a program that provides individuals with mental retardation (Athletes) and individuals without mental retardation (Partners) the opportunity to train and compete together as a team. The purpose of the program is to provide an environment in which all participants can improve sport skills through training and competition. Unified Sports® is most successful when all participants are matched according to ability and age. Teams are constructed in such a way as to provide training and competition opportunities that meaningfully challenge all participants and often lead to improved self-esteem, equal status with peers, and new friendships.
Unified Sports
- Basketball
- Bowling
- Canoeing
- Golf
- Sailing
- Soccer
- Softball
- Table Tennis
- Volleyball
For more information contact:
Helen Parish, helen.parish@specialolympics.org