Special Olympics timeline

Shriver Creates the Special Olympics

The first International Special Olympics Games were held in Chicago in 1968. Anne McGlone Burke, a physical education teacher with the Chicago Park... Read more

1968 International Special Olympics Summer Games

The First International Special Olympics Games (Summer Special Olympics) were held in Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois. These were the very... Read more

1970 International Special Olympics Summer Games

13-15 August 1970 The Second International Special Olympics Summer Games take place in Chicago, Illinois, with 2,000 athletes from all 50 U.S.... Read more

1972 International Special Olympics Summer Games

13-18 August 1972 The Third International Special Olympics Summer Games take place at the University of California-Los Angeles with 2,500... Read more

1975 International Special Olympics Summer Games

7-11 August 1975 The Fourth International Special Olympics Summer Games take place at Central Michigan University in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, with... Read more

1977 International Special Olympics Winter Games

5-11 February 1977 The First International Special Olympics Winter Games are held in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, with more than 500 athletes... Read more

1979 International Special Olympics Summer Games

8-13 August 1979 The Fifth International Special Olympics Summer Games take place at the State University of New York at Brockport, with more than... Read more

1981 International Special Olympics Winter Games

8-13 March 1981 The Second International Special Olympics Winter Games are held at the Village of Smugglers' Notch and Stowe, Vermont, with more... Read more

1983 International Special Olympics Summer Games

12-18 July 1983 The Sixth International Special Olympics Summer Games are held at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. A crowd of more than... Read more

1985 International Special Olympics Winter Games

24-29 March 1985 Athletes from 14 countries are represented in skiing and skating events at the Third International Special Olympics Winter Games... Read more

1987 International Special Olympics Summer Games

Proclamation 5683 -- International Special Olympics Week and Day, 1987 July 20, 1987 By the President of the United States of America A... Read more

1989 International Special Olympics Winter Games

1-8 April 1989 The Fourth International Special Olympics Winter Games are held in Reno, Nevada, and Lake Tahoe, California. More than 1,000... Read more

1991 Special Olympics World Winter Games

19-27 July 1991 The Eighth Special Olympics World Summer Games* are held in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota. Six thousand athletes from more than... Read more

1993 Special Olympics World Winter Games

20-27 March 1993 The Fifth Special Olympics World Winter Games are held in Salzburg and Schladming, Austria, with 1,600 athletes from more than 50... Read more

Shriver Appears on the 1995 Commemorative Special Olympics Silver Dollar

Uncovering America's Heritage... Coin by Coin 1995 Special Olympics Commemorative Silver Dollar Hi, everyone! It's me, Plinky. For June, I... Read more

1995 Special Olympics World Summer Games

The Ninth Special Olympics World Summer Games were held in New Haven, Connecticut, USA on July 1-9, 1995. More than 7,000 athletes from 143... Read more

1997 Special Olympics World Winter Games

Remarks: 1997 World Games 1997 Special Olympics World Winter Games Opening Ceremonies Eunice Kennedy Shriver Skydome, Toronto,... Read more

1999 Special Olympics World Summer Games

The 1999 Special Olympics World Summer Games were held in Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill in North Carolina, United States between June 26 and... Read more

2001 Special Olympics World Winter Games

The biggest winter sporting event ever held in Alaska came to a ceremonial close Sunday at Sullivan Arena when Lt. Gov. Fran Ulmer declared an end... Read more

2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games

The 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games were hosted in Ireland, with participants staying in various host towns around the island in the lead... Read more

2005 Special Olympics World Winter Games

The 2005 Special Olympics Winter World Games were hosted at Nagano in Japan and were the first Special Olympics World Games held in Asia. Nagano... Read more

2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games

SHANGHAI, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao declared open the 2007 Special Olympic World Summer Games at the opening ceremony here on... Read more

2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games

The 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games was held in the state of Idaho, USA from February 7 through February 13, 2009. Nearly 2500 athletes... Read more

Eunice Kennedy Shriver Dies at 88

With enormous conviction and unrelenting effort, Eunice Kennedy Shriver has labored on behalf of America’s least powerful people, those with mental... Read more