- Special athletes to attempt spot jump for over a minute to try and make it to Guinness Book of World Record
NE SPORTS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, APRIL 7
In an attempt to leverage every opportunity to spread awareness about the need to help intellectually impaired athletes of Gujarat on the health front, the Special Olympics Bharat (SOB), a national organization working for the promotion of the intellectually impaired, is organizing health and fitness screening camps to make a mark during the ongoing Amrit Mahotsav.
Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav is an initiative of the government of India to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of progressive India. This celebration has provided the SOB with a golden opportunity to showcase the abilities of the athletes and the expansion of the Special Olympics program in India while reaching out to many more stakeholders.
At least 10,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities will be screened on the occasion of World Health Day, observed on Thursday, April 7, in a drive launched in Gujarat on Wednesday, an official said.
Of the 10,000 athletes, over 7,500 will be screened at Karnavati University in Ahmedabad on Wednesday and Thursday, while others will be screened at the Indoor Stadium in Surat, stated the Special Olympics Bharat, a national sports federation accredited by Special Olympics Inc USA.
Special Olympics Bharat works for the development of sports for the persons with intellectual disabilities.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Mallika Nadda, the chairperson of Special Olympics Bharat said, “Our organisation supports people with intellectual disabilities using sports, health and youth leadership as interventions to improve their lives in a movement towards building inclusion, dignity and respect in society. Over 190 countries are part of this program and we are proud to say India is the largest running program across the world with over 17 lac special athletes from India registered as part of the Special Olympics movement.”
Dr. Alicia Bazzano, Chief Health Officer, Special Olympics International said, “Sadly people with intellectual disabilities were affected more drastically by the pandemic. Our athletes suffered from declining mental and physical health during this time. People with intellectual disabilities face a lot of health issues which may not be due to the disability itself but due to preventable conditions. If we detect these conditions early and provide inclusive healthcare it can significantly impact their life spans as well. There are over 20 million Indians living with intellectual disability today, this event is a marker of what a modern and inclusive India looks like.”
Further adding to this, Dipak Natali, President & Managing Director, Special Olympics Asia Pacific aptly concluded, “What is wonderful about what we are doing today is expanding peoples understanding of what we do with Special Olympics. While sports is the start of the journey of our athletes with special Olympics, we find opportunities to change their lives. The first step in that journey is health screening. Events such as this really helps change the way people with intellectual disabilities are treated in their communities.”
Following medical screenings – Special Smiles (Dental), Opening Eyes (Eye examination), and Health Promotion (Preventive & Nutrition),, the athletes will then assemble for the closing ceremony at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Motera here.
The event will be presided by Chief Minister Bhupendra Rajnikant Patel. He will be joined by Dr. Alicia Bazzano, Chief Health Officer of Special Olympics International, Dipak Natali, Regional President & Managing Director of Special Olympics Asia Pacific, and Dr Mallika Nadda, Chairperson of Special Olympics Bharat and Dr DG Chaudhari, General Secretary of SO Bharat.
The event will feature the popular Porbandar Gujarati Dandiya Raas. The cultural show will be followed by a Fit 5 regimen demonstrated by 5,000 athletes, and will also be pitched for the Guinness Book of Records. The celebratory ambiancewill scale with the announcement of the various awards received by SO Bharat through the health fest.
Fit 5 demonstration will be conducted at the screening venues. Fit 5 is a plan for physical activity, nutrition, and hydration, aiming to improve the health and fitness of the athletes and persons from a cross-section of the society. 750 Special Olympics Bharat Centers will be activated in phases,encouraging the Athletes to include sports in their daily lives. The registrations of the athletes will be executed through an indigenously designed mobile application designed to promote digital access and establish a monitoring system for the Athletes creating a timeline for each.
SO Bharat Gujarat
With its inception in 2001, SO Bharat Gujarat currently has over 1 Lakh Athletes with Intellectual Disability registered with themselves.
Job opportunities & lifetime healthcare
Dr DG Chaudhari, General Secretary of SO Bharat, “The opening of 750 sports centres will offer a lot of job opportunity for the intellectually impaired athletes. The SO Bharat has urged the Gujarat Government to extend the 3 percent job quota for this special category. Unique ID cards will be issued to all the participating athletes which will assist them to avail free health check-ups and follow-up treatments at concerned hospitals for their dental care and eye treatment in future. All special athletes who attend the health screening camps will get free treatment throughout their life.”
Pride of Gujarat
Niren Patel, one of the intellectually impaired athletes, had taken part in table tennis in Australia in 2013 and bagged two silver medals. Now, he is working as coach for intellectually impaired athletes in Gujarat.
