Charity Number 1187246

Special Olympics GB (taken from their website www.specialolympicsgb.org.uk)

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 Special Olympics Great Britain (GB) is a non-profit organisation and largest provider of year-round sports training and athletic   competition in summer and winter sports for children and adults of ALL abilities with intellectual disabilities also known as learning   disabilities. With a competition pathway designed to nurture and progress athletes from local competitions through to accessing   international level   competitions, our focus at Special Olympics GB is on ability not disability and providing opportunities for our   athletes to compete with others at similar levels both at home in Great Britain and abroad.   
 We operate across Scotland, England and Wales and currently have a network of 95 all ability, inclusive sports accredited   programmes and delivery partners. We offer 27 different sports from ice-skating and skiing to football, boccia and judo to name just   a few. All of which is delivered by an amazing team of over 3,500 volunteers who support more than 6,500 athletes in a safe and     nurturing environment.  
 Special Olympics GB is so much more than just a sport organisation – we genuinely transform lives.  Through sport we provide   opportunities for our athletes to make friends, learn social skills, feel part of a community, increase confidence and self-esteem,   realise potential, develop physical fitness and mental well-being, demonstrate courage and experience joy and pride. And above all, for   both athletes and their families – to have some FUN!

 Special Olympics GB is part of the global Special Olympics International organisation which is the largest disability sports   organisation in the world. As a global movement Special Olympics reaches 3.6 million athletes across 200 countries.  Together we   want to inspire real change by raising awareness of intellectual disability, ending discrimination, and building an inclusive world for all. 
 We are Special Olympics GB. We are Inclusion in Action. 

 Special Olympics 2027 Summer Games
 Special Olympics GB National Summer Games has traditionally been delivered every four years marking the pinnacle of the summer   sport advancement pathway and being the most notable qualification opportunity for Special Olympics World Summer Games   nominations. Following our last National Summer Games held in Sheffield in 2017, Special Olympics GB (SOGB) was working with   Liverpool City Council with a view to deliver a National Summer Games in the city in 2021. Unfortunately, the global Covid-19   pandemic and subsequent cuts to local authority budgets led the games to be postponed and then cancelled. As we returned to   activity following the pandemic, we acknowledged the increasing appetite (via home country and regional check ins, surveys, working   groups, Athlete Leadership Team and regular ad-hoc queries) from the SOGB membership. There was a need to get back into regular   training and also have a competition pathway re established with national competitions included and thus, ‘Guide to Competition’ and   ‘Summer Series of Sport’ were launched to support athletes and volunteers back into SOGB competitions post Covid-19. Four years   on, we have seen the enhanced development and delivery of Team SOGB attendance at the World Summer (Berlin 2023) and World   Winter (Turin 2025) Games. Along with the delivery of the first Special Olympics GB National Winter Games (Folgaria 2024), this made   significant progress towards getting the domestic local national competition programme back to pre-pandemic numbers. Over the past   three years, more than 80 competitions have been delivered annually, indicating growing demand for Special Olympics GB competition   opportunities and a return to the competition advancement pathway. In April 2025, following initial scoping on the benefits and   demand for a Special Olympics GB National Summer Event in 2026, the staff team delivered a stakeholder consultation to help shape   the format of the event. The intention of the Special Olympics GB 2026 National Summer Games is to introduce a new event format   that brings together the most valued elements of a National Games, aligns with the resource demands of the evolving sporting   landscape, and provides qualification opportunities for the World Summer Games. Special Olympics GB 2026 National Summer Games   will provide the opportunity for our athletes to showcase their ability, meet their friends from across the Special Olympics GB   movement alongside experiencing a high-quality event.   

 Swimming Events, 26th to 30th August 2027
 These will take place at the Wyndley Leisure Centre, Sutton Coldfield.  A bit of background...
 Jake had been receiving coaching with Lorah at Wild Shark Swim Club for a while and she was aware of Jakes long term desire (8   years) to take part in the Special Olympics.  Along came Sam, who wasn’t taking part in competition and had a desire to do so. Lorah   contacted Special Olympics  GB, knowing that the Summer Games were approaching and after a lot of work and determination, the   swim club became an affiliated club with SOGB, which then enabled them to register Jake and Sam.  At the start of May, the   Registration period opened, and in the middle of May we received confirmation that both boys had places at the Games! Both Jake   and Sam are now training hard and really looking forward to this challenge. They will have a small coaching team from the swim club   with them poolside, enabling their families to proudly cheer them on from the balcony.