www.specialolympicsbharat.org

October 2017

Greetings from Special Olympics Bharat

We have to grow in quality and with a message to the world that we will not stop - Dr Tim Shriver,

Chairman, Special Olympics International

Dr Tim Shriver’s arrival in India (New Delhi) this

month opened with his first session with Special

Olympics Bharat’s engagement with the WWE

Superstar Jinder Mahal. The evening witnessed the

Chairman’s first address to the Athletes, Coaches

and family members in the presence of the

superstar. While Jinder Mahal presented Dr Tim

Shriver with a belt, he was gifted with the Red Play

Unified Ball along with the message it symbolizes.

Mr Shawn Ferguson from SOI, Mr Simon Koh and

Ms Catherine Ho from SOAP were part of the

Special Olympics team

The Chairman continued to blend deeper into the SO Bharat family starting right from the football grounds

of the Frank Anthony Public School the next day, where he kick started the match played between Unified

teams comprising of Delhi Dynamos and India Spurs as Unified partners. The excitement scaled higher as

the morning announced a collaboration between Delhi Dynamos, the ISL football team and SO Bharat in

Unified sporting activities, in the presence of Mr Ashish Shah, CEO of the team. Wow the energy levels on

a Monday morning is amazing! We want to play at grassroots. It is an honour to be part of this event. The

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players and cheer leaders are the VIPs here and hopefully we will see you at the stadium during one of the

matches- Mr Ashish Shah

Dr Shriver’s trip entailed a comprehensive circuit coming face to face with the valued stakeholders of SO

Bharat including the Area Directors, Clinical Directors, Media persons, youth leaders along with the Athletes

and Coaches while also visiting key schools which have been involved in the Special Olympics Unified

engagements- The Apeejay School Pitampura and the Kulachi Hansraj School Ashok Vihar, New Delhi.

Media interactions and Meetings with Government leaders further stoked the need to spread awareness to

affect attitude change and augment growth of the movement with quality in India

We are all involved in a revolution. It’s not a violent revolution, it’s not an aggressive revolution; It is a

revolution of the heart. A revolution that transforms the mind- Dr Tim Shriver Media Coverage

The outcome of Tim Shriver’s earlier visit in 2006 led to the recognition of SO Bharat as National Federation

for the development of Sports for persons with Intellectual Disabilities in the Priority Category, creating a

historical milestone for us. An invaluable implication of this recognition lies in it being the biggest act of

Inclusion all over the world, demonstrating hope, trust and confidence, thereby transforming lives of our

Athletes for the better. I am proud and honoured that I have been able to share a part of the development

and experience of this global movement – Air Marshal Denzil Keelor Pics

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With Amity University in nurturing a Unified Generation

Continuing to keep the association strong and relevant the Amity University held a Special Olympics Unified

Sports training at the Campus on 21st and 22nd of September 2017 . The training was led by by MM Khurram

and Sagar Chaudhary who were assisted by Suresh and Siddhant Nath. 80 students of the Amity Institute

of Rehabilitation Sciences(AIRS) and Amity School of Physical Education & Sports Sciences(ASPESS)

participated in the program

The training rolled out the fundamentals and models of Unified sports through indoor theory sessions along

with on field application of the same through demonstrations and simulation practises specifically in Unified

Bocce and Football. The trainees delivered a session engaging directly with 20 Athletes who joined them

on the second day , being assessed and evaluated by the resource team

Tottenham Hotspur Foundation- Coaching Clinic Module II at Goa

A four day workshop was conducted from 5 – 8 September 2017 at Don Bosco Panjim Goa with two

additional days of training , 9 & 10 September 2017, extended to Coaches from the GFDC. The Training

was led by Coaches from the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation (THF), UK-Dan Slaughter & Dan Dodge along

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with Dipak Natali Director - Organization Development and Coen Van Putten, Senior Sports Development

Manager from SOAP.

40 Coaches from 18 states of India participated to

progress to the second module of the Coach

Development program, having participated in the first

module conducted in November 2016 at

Bhubaneswar Odisha. 50 GFDC (Goa Football

Development Council) Coaches from North and South Goa received training on 9 and 10 September at the

same venue. Unified 5-a-side football matches were held with 30 Athletes and 20 Unified Partners on the

last day of training. Dan Dodge , Coach Development Tutor, Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, “ This is

my second experience with most of them so they already have a basic foundational knowledge. This course

was to build on that and take them to the next level. The training was received well despite the language

barrier, which we tried to overcome. Moving forward, I expect them to take the seed that we’ve planted and

help it grow the spurs way”

A Morning of Warmth & Joy - with Ms Natalia Vodianova

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Ms Natalia Vodianova, Special Olympics International Board Member visited the SPJ Sadhana Special

School Sofia College Campus, Mumbai on 22 September 2017. The morning saw an unusual frenzy of

activities and arrangements prior to her visit, which suddenly calmed as she blended perfectly with the

Athletes, School representatives and the Special Olympics Bharat Maharashtra team. Ms Natalia created

innumerable cherish-able moments with her instant connect with the Athletes who are receiving training

across departments of Hospitality , media engagement, exclusive art and more vocational skills along with

a fun-filled Young Athletes session. The refreshments which were served were prepared by the Athletes,

as part of their training at the Centre.

Natalia Vodianova, is a member of the SOI Board of Directors, lending her support to numerous fund-

raising events over the years. “Visits to Special Olympics are always very special! But in India it went to

another level. Thank you for recharging my soular battery”

The 2nd Regional Unified Sports Advisory Committee Meeting (RUSAC)- Chennai

September 2017 saw convergence of the Special Olympics Representatives from Washington DC, USA

and from over 8 countries from the Asia Pacific Region including the Leaders from Special Olympics Bharat

at the Tech Park, SRM University Campus, Kattankulathur, Tamil Nadu, India. At the power packed venue,

the 2nd RUSAC meeting inked MoUs with 6 organizations including the SRM University, Lions International

District 324 A6, Lions Club of Chennai Mount City, Montfort Community Development Society, Rotary Club

of United Chennai Dist 3232 and Planet 3 Sports committing to support Special Olympics Unified Sports

A Special Olympics Unified Cricket Competition was held with participation of 75 Athletes and 75 Leos as

Unified Partners at the SRM University Cricket Grounds in a one-day competition

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IKEA Foundation- Lets Play for Change Exclusive

Changing the Game- IKEA India plays with Young Athletes

“I have read about Special Olympics but coming here and engaging with the Athletes has made me relate

with the program- how sports can truly be a catalyst; Even as a parent I will tell my child to play- it is

important”- IKEA India team member

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The IWitness program took the Resource Team from SOI, SOAP , SO Bharat National Office and the State

Chapter to the IKEA India office in Hyderabad to introduce the Special Olympics program along with the

ongoing IKEA project. A team of 13 members from their office geared to enter a new experience – and were

very excited to do so too

The team visited the Child Guidance Centre and

Spurthi Special School in Hyderabad observing,

participating enthusiastically with the Athletes while

constantly interacting with School Authorities, family

members, Mentors and the State Chapter, eager to

connect with the whole environment. They look forward

to many such interactions and continue with regular

dialogues with the family members and mentors to map

progress and monitor a meaningful delivery of the

project. The IWitness program was part of the IKEA

Foundation’s “Let’s Play for Change” campaign, which

aims at more than 300,000 children with intellectual

disabilities to gain access to play-based development activities through Special Olympics Young Athletes

Program. The Young Athletes program highlights the importance of play and includes a series of structured

physical activities, songs and games to teach basic motor development skills Read More From the heart

Impact evaluation of Development Skills and Community Inclusion – AIT

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To lead research efforts in the Special Olympics Young Athletes program supported by IKEA Foundation a

team from the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) , Bangkok visited India in the month of September

2017.Directly working under the SOI they are facilitating Impact evaluation of Development Skills and

Community Inclusion for 4 C's (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Thailand). The purpose of the visit was to

gain an overview of the SO Bharat program along with a comprehensive implementation of the Project. The

visit took them to Asha AWWA and Kulachi Hansraj Schools in Delhi and the Chetanalaya Center and

Aanganwadi at Rohtak to witness the program along with interacting with stakeholders in the community.

This visit to India also connected them with their local partners – The Amity University NOIDA

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