The Special Olympics Movement was founded in the USA in 1968 by the late Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of President John F Kennedy. Shriver believed that the Olympic ideals of sport could give confidence and new hope to people with intellectual disabilities (learning disabilities) as well as to those who cared for them. Today Special Olympics reaches over 5.7million athletes in more than 200 countries worldwide.
Founder Chairman
Special Olympics Bangladesh
The foundation of Special Olympics Bangladesh was laid in 1991, when the Vice President and General Manager of Special Olympics International, Mr. Will Hoen Droph, visited Bangladesh with the vision of opening a branch of Special Olympics in the country.
At that time, SCMRB (Society for the Care of the Mentally Retarded, Bangladesh) was the largest organization working for persons with intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics International invited SCMRB to participate in the Special Olympics World Games held in Minneapolis, USA, in 1991, as a visiting team.
The Executive Committee of SCMRB nominated Mr. Ashraf Dowla as the Head of Delegation, leading a team consisting of five athletes and two coaches.
SCMRB team performed exceptionally well at the Minneapolis World Games, winning one gold, three silver, and three bronze medals. This remarkable achievement drew the attention of Special Olympics International, and Bangladesh received formal congratulations.
In 1993, Mr. Will Hoen Droph visited Bangladesh once again and entrusted Mr. Dowla with the responsibility of serving as Chairman to form an ad hoc Executive Committee of Special Olympics Bangladesh. Accordingly, a six-member Executive Committee was formed in the same year. Under his guidance, steps were taken to draft the Constitution of Special Olympics Bangladesh, with valuable contributions from Mr. Will Hoen Droph.
Subsequently, Special Olympics Bangladesh Foundation was officially registered with the Ministry of Law in July 1994. Mr. Ashraf Dowla became the Founder Chairman of SO Bangladesh.
Special Olympics Bangladesh's first official participation in the Special Olympics World Summer Games took place in New Haven, USA, in 1995. Once again, Bangladesh athletes achieved outstanding success, bringing honor and pride to Bangladesh. After that, till today, successive success of the Athletes of Special Olympics Bangladesh continued in every SO World Games.
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