Special Olympics Bharat on Monday announced that the National Send-Off ceremony for the SO Bharat contingent for the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2023 Berlin Germany will take place on June 8 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
As many as 198 Athletes and Unified partners and 57 Coaches will participate in 16 Sports. The Special Olympics World Games are the world’s largest inclusive sporting event which will be a colourful celebration promoting recognition and inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities. Berlin will welcome 7000 Athletes and Unified partners across 190 countries to participate in 26 sports.
The ceremony on Thursday will consist of two parts – The Torch Run and the Send-Off Ceremony. The Torch Run will begin at 5 PM and will be conducted within the inner periphery of the stadium with Hon’ble Union Minister Shri Anurag Thakur, Department of Youth Affairs and Sports and Department of Information and Broadcasting as the Chief Guest.
After the Torch Run, the Send Off ceremony will begin with Hon’ble Union Minister Smt. Smriti Irani, Department of Women and Child Development and Department of Minority Affairs as the Chief Guest. Other distinguished guests present at the occasion will also include PT Usha, Sonu Nigam and Yuvraj Singh.
The entire Indian contingent will also be in attendance along with the valuable presence of the Delhi NCR Athletes, Coaches, families, volunteers and partners.
Addressing the media, Dr Mallika Nadda, chairperson, Special Olympics Bharat, said: Special Olympics Bharat is a National Sports Federation for athletes with intellectual disabilities. I have been associated with SO Bharat for over 30 years. To train and prepare athletes with intellectual challenges in sports is a challenging task, especially when they travel to compete for global events such as the upcoming Special Olympics World Games in Berlin.”
“SO Bharat is not limited to sports – we are also working towards inclusion through education, health and sports. With the Send-Off ceremony on June 8, we wish to motivate special athletes. We also want to provide means of inclusion and a life of dignity to these athletes. In order to do so, we urge states to provide appropriate rewards to our medal-winning athletes after their return from Berlin, and to include them in state sports policies and also support them in providing them employment opportunities. Our motto is to recognise, respect, accept and include. I wish all athletes my best wishes for the upcoming Games.”
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