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Special Olympics history
Special Olympics company history timeline
December 1968 - Special Olympics is established as a not-for-profit charitable organization under the laws of the District of Columbia.
R. Sargent Shriver …was elected president of the Special Olympics, which his wife, Eunice, had founded in 1968.
June 1969 - Special Olympics gets its start in Texas, within the recreation division of the Texas Association for Retarded Citizens (TARC). The first Summer Games is held at Paul Tyson Stadium in Waco, with 350 athletes competing in 10 track and field events.
August 1970 - The Second International Special Olympics Summer Games takes place in Chicago, Illinois with 2,000 athletes from all 50 United States states, the District of Columbia, France, and Puerto Rico.
August 1972 - The Third International Special Olympics Summer Games takes place at the University of California – Los Angeles with 2,500 participants.
August 1975 - The Fourth International Special Olympics Summer Games takes place at Central Michigan University in Mt.
1978 - Special Olympics Texas establishes non-profit status.
March 1981 - The Second International Special Olympics Winter Games is held at the Village of Smugglers’ Notch and Stowe, Vermont with more than 600 Alpine and cross-country skiers and ice skaters participating.
June 1985 - The Law Enforcement Torch Run in Texas begins, when a small group of Houston police officers carries a Special Olympics torch to the Houston city limits and gives it to a group from the Bexar County Mounted Patrol.
1986 - The Athlete Leadership Program (ALPs) launches.
August 1987 - The University of Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s College in South Bend, Indiana, host the Seventh International Special Olympics Summer Games.
October 1987 - Jimmy and Vicki Iovine of A&M Records and Bobby Shriver produce A Very Special Christmas, featuring holiday music performed by top pop chart music performers, with all album proceeds benefiting Special Olympics Programs worldwide.
April 1989 - The Fourth International Special Olympics Winter Games is held in Reno, Nevada, and Lake Tahoe, California.
February 1990 - Sargent Shriver announces the historic decision by the former Soviet Union to join the Special Olympics movement.
March 1993 - The Fifth Special Olympics World Winter Games is held in Salzburg and Schladming, Austria, with 1,600 athletes from more than 50 countries participating in five winter sports.
July 1995 - More than 7,000 athletes from 143 countries gather in New Haven, Connecticut, for competition in 21 sports at the Ninth Special Olympics World Summer Games.
June/July 1999 - The 10th Special Olympics World Summer Games is held in the Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill area (Triangle) in North Carolina.
December 2000 - United States President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton host A Very Special Christmas from Washington, D.C. Christmas concert at the White House to celebrate the "Spirit of Special Olympics."
October 2001 - Special Olympics Texas adds its third statewide competition, the Fall Classic.
December 2001 - United States Surgeon General David Satcher holds a conference in Washington, D.C., to address the disparities in health care experienced by people with intellectual disabilities.
February 2002 - United States Surgeon General David Satcher releases A National Blueprint to Improve the Health of People with Intellectual Disabilities, the first government report to bring this issue to the forefront and promote actions to remedy it.
In 2003 Shriver was diagnosed with Alzheimer disease.
The world's largest sporting event for 2003 features 7,000 athletes from more than 150 countries participating in 21 sports.
December 2005 - Fox Searchlight releases The Ringer, a Farrelly Brothers film about Special Olympics that uses humor to challenge negative stereotypes of people with intellectual disabilities.
Through the partnership, Special Olympics Europe/Eurasia aims to bring opportunities to 15,000 new players by 2006.
October 2007 - Sixty Texas athletes compete in the 2007 World Summer Games in Shanghai, the People’s Republic of China.
July 2008 - Special Olympics, Inc. marks its 40th anniversary as a true global movement, with almost 3 million athletes in more than 180 countries around the world.
June 2009 - Special Olympics Texas, Inc. celebrates its 40th anniversary.
July 2010 - One-hundred fifty-two Texas athletes, accompanied by 39 coaches, compete in the 2010 United StatesA. National Games in Lincoln, Nebraska.
July 2011 - Thirty-five Texas athletes compete in the 2011 World Summer Games in Athens, Greece.
September 2013 - Ceremonial groundbreaking for new statewide headquarters.
May 2014 - Construction begins on new statewide headquarters.
June 2014 - 124 athletes, accompanied by 33 coaches, compete in the 2014 USA Games in New Jersey.
June 2015 - Newly constructed statewide headquarters officially opens.
May 2016 - Special Olympics Texas rolls out its Food for Fitness nutritional program to educate athletes on how consuming healthful foods can fuel their bodies to be the best athletes they can be.
In 2016 a team from Special Olympics met to discuss the 50th anniversary of the organization and the possible donation of materials related to the beginnings of Special Olympics.
March 2017 - Dallas-area figure skater Ian Rawn represents the United States in the 2017 Special Olympics World Winter Games held in Austria.
July 2018 - SOTX was represented at the Unified Cup as part of the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Special Olympics Inc.
May 2019 - Unified becomes a core focus at SOTX, including the beginning stages of an all-new agreement with UIL.
July 2021 - Record breaking Texas Roadhouse and grant funding at all time high during on and off pause on return to play/COVID-19 safety protocols.
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Special Olympics competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kiwanis International | 1915 | $20.7M | 115 | 2 |
| Girl Scouts of the USA | 1912 | $112.2M | 500 | 194 |
| American Red Cross | 1881 | $2.7B | 35,000 | 577 |
| Mothers Against Drunk Driving | 1980 | $32.3M | 2,013 | 31 |
| March of Dimes | 1938 | $169.3M | 7,500 | 20 |
| Goodwill Industries International | 1902 | $6.1B | 100 | 186 |
| Morehouse College | 1867 | $105.4M | 750 | 170 |
| Georgetown University | 1789 | $1.6B | 3,457 | 215 |
| Los Angeles Times | 1881 | $780.0M | 2,052 | 3 |
| Washington Plaza Hot | - | $310.0M | 3,347 | - |
Special Olympics history FAQs
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Special Olympics may also be known as or be related to SPECIAL OLYMPICS INC, 2015 Special Olympics World Games, Special Olympics, Inc. and Special Olympics.