For Immediate Release
Special Olympics Convenes Global Congress in Morocco Next Week
Leadership from more than 174 Special Olympics Programs from 139 Countries Around the World Meet to Ignite the Special Olympics Movement
Special Olympics will bring together leadership from more than 139 countries and 174 Special Olympics Programs around the world in Marrakech, Morocco next week for its 2010 Special Olympics Global Congress. The 2010 Special Olympics Global Congress will be held over four days from 6 June – 10 to chart the course for the future of the Special Olympics movement.
A European Leadership Conference will take place in Casablanca, Morocco this weekend ahead of the Global Congress, bringing heads of Special Olympics programmes in Europe and Eurasia together to formulate a strategy to greatly expand the movement across the region.
The 2010 Global Congress is being supported under the Patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco and is being made possible through the vision and leadership of Her Royal Highness Princess Lalla Amina, who also serves on Special Olympics’ International’s Board of Directors.
Over the past 10 years, Special Olympics has grown rapidly, having tripled the number of participating athletes to nearly 3.5 million and now having Programs established in more than 170 nations worldwide. That growth brings challenges and opportunities which will be addressed through this Global Congress. The Congress will provide a unique forum to unite and engage Special Olympics leadership in a serious global dialogue about how to sustain quality growth of the movement.
“We are excited to be able to bring together our leadership from all corners of the world,” said Special Olympics Chairman and CEO Timothy Shriver, “This is an incredible opportunity to ignite a spark within our movement by sharing ideas and best practices to further our reach and to gain respect and acceptance for our athletes as we look to support the more than 200 million people worldwide who have an intellectual disability.”
The 2010 Global Congress will also give leadership from Special Olympics the opportunity to carry the torch of Special Olympics late founder, Eunice Kennedy Shriver. Mrs. Shriver will be honored as Special Olympics’ leadership ignites an even bolder movement in support of the Special Olympics mission to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, as well as building communities of acceptance and inclusion throughout the world.
Through inspiring guest speakers, plenary sessions and breakout discussions, engagement with Special Olympics athletes and best practices education, the 2010 Global Congress will enable leadership to build a better future for the movement. The 2010 Global Congress will be a defining event for Special Olympics as the emerging five pillars of the movement are explored: sports and competitions, building communities, fans and funds, movement leadership and sustainable capabilities.
Expected guest speakers to include: Timothy P. Shriver, Chairman & CEO. Special Olympics; J. Brady Lum, President and COO, Special Olympics; Muhtar Kent, Chairman & CEO of The Coca-Cola Company; Peter Arnell, Chairman of the Arnell Group; Her Excellency Suzanne Mubarak, First Lady of Egypt; Bobby Shriver, Co-founder of (Product)RED; Maria Shriver, First Lady of California; Clarence Seedorf, global football champion; Monica Seles, tennis legend; Angelo Moratti, Chairman. Special Olympics Italy; Joanna Despotopoulou, President of Special Olympics World Sumer Games Athens 2011; Nadia Comaneci and Bart Conner, Olympic Legends; Congresswoman Na Kyung-won of Korea; and Aaron Williams, Director of the Peace Corps, among others.
For more information about the Special Olympics Global Congress please visit:
http://staging.specialolympics.org/globalcongress/