Special Olympics with Paralympics

 Special Olympics with Paralympics

The joining of these two will also offer a higher level of competition, and recognition for the athletes. With more athletes competing, and higher levels of competition, the athletes will experience a more competitive environment. The athletes will receive more recognition for their hard work and dedication. Special Olympic athletes would also have more resources, and developmental pathways, that are not readily available.

I believe athletes with intellectual disabilities should be allowed to compete in Paralympics competitions. As stated above it is in alignment with both the Paralympics, and Special Olympics core values. There are some limitations to this however. Athletes should continue to have classifications according to their skill level, and their disabilities. This will ensure that athletes have fair competition against similarly skilled athletes. Creating a fair competition when examining athletes with different disabilities might be difficult. However an extensive classification system with constant reevaluation will ensure a more fair competition. In the past there have been cheating scandals that have deceived the classification system. The gold winning 2000 Spanish basketball team was found to have athletes that were faking their intellectual disabilities. While this was a disgusting, and immoral act by these people, it did point out the weak points in the classification system. It also created concern for the continuation of the Paralympics allowing athletes with intellectual disabilities to compete. This was not the only scandal that has occurred, there have been others that are just as concerning causing the Paralympics to put severe restrictions on their competitions.

While these scandals are as concerning as they are immoral, they have pushed the governing bodies such as Virtus, and the IPC to focus on their classification process. This has led them to create a robust, in depth process that rigorously assess athletes intellectual function, and prevents manipulation of the athlete’s eligibility. These scandals are serious, however they can not be the reason that athletes with intellectual disabilities are kept from competing in the Paralympics. The joining of Special Olympics, and the Paralympics would be an overwhelmingly great thing for the athletes, that would align perfectly with the core values of each organization.


Work Cited

Special Olympics Mission. SpecialOlympics.org. (2022, April 11). https://www.specialolympics.org/about/mission 

United Nations. (n.d.). United Nations, sports and the Paralympic Games: Promoting human rights, development and the ideals of humanity enable. United Nations. https://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/united-nations-sports-and-the-paralympic-games-promoting-human-rights-development-and-the-ideals-of-humanity.html#:~:text=The%20goals%20of%20the%20United,place%20sport%20at%20the%20service


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