Global Athlete Congress
The Global Athlete Congress (GAC) is a platform where Special Olympics athletes lead the way to a more inclusive world. It’s a space where athlete leaders from all 7 Special Olympics Regions further develop their leadership skills, so they can take on leadership roles in Special Olympics, their communities, and their workplace.
Leading Together
The 2023 Global Athlete Congress took place from June 15 – 19 during Special Olympics World Games in Berlin. The Congress’s official slogan “Leading Together” reflects the goal of creating a society, in which people with and without intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD), both inside and outside the Special Olympics movement, will lead together in all aspects of society.
The 2023 Global Athlete Congress successfully achieved its objective of further developing athletes’ leadership skills, so they can take on leadership roles in Special Olympics, their communities, and their workplace.
The 2023 Global Athlete Congress successfully achieved its objective of further developing athletes’ leadership skills, so they can take on leadership roles in Special Olympics, their communities, and their workplace.
Global Athlete Congress Overview 2023
Meet the 2023 GAC Participants
Thanks to the support of Bank of America all the athlete leaders that participated in the 2023 Global Athlete Congress received grants to implement projects to help create more inclusive environments in their communities.
Learn more about them and their projects!
Learn more about them and their projects!
SOA
SOAP
SOEA
SOEE
SOLA
SOMENA
SONA
Barbara Njovo
Special Olympics Zimbabwe
Boniface Kimeu
Special Olympics Kenya
Daisy Nguni
Special Olympics Zambia
Brightfield Shadi
Special Olympics Botswana
Hippolyte Koubassare
Special Olympics Burkina
Jimmy Masina
Special Olympics South Africa
Miguel Francois Jeannot
Special Olympics Mauritus
Sammy Kamande
Special Olympics Kenya
Santos Antonio
Special Olympics Namibia
Victor Umeh
Special Olympics Nigeria
Carmelo Sandiego
Special Olympics Philippines
David Sullivan
Special Olympics New Zealand
Grace Payne
Special Olympics New Zealand
Pauline Paul
Special Olympics Papua New Guinea
Qing Hui
Special Olympics Singapore
Rithik Hukku
Special Olympics Bharat India
Ruby Lawler
Special Olympics Australia
Shrey Kadian
Special Olympics Bharat India
Bilguun Munkhbaatar
Special Olympics Mongolia
Candy Wong
Special Olympics Hong Kong
Chi Long Szeto
Special Olympics Hong Kong
Ching-Yun Tseng
Special Olympics Chinese Taipei
Dowon Kim
Special Olympics Korea
Shiyu Zhang
Special Olympics China
Sou Sin Leng
Special Olympics Macau
Won Jae Choi
Special Olympics Korea
Yeruult Batbayar
Special Olympics Mongolia
Adam Hammer
Special Olympics Hungary
Claire Adams
Special Olympics Ireland
Edna Šunjić
Special Olympics Bosnia and Herzegovina
Inge Maiberg
Special Olympics Estonia
Kiera Byland
Special Olympics Great Britain
Manuel Wehner
Special Olympics Germany
Michael Lofink
Special Olympics Germany
Shanaia Xuereb
Special Olympics Malta
Tatjana Raible
Special Olympics Germany
Álvaro Brochero
Special Olympics Venezuela
Andrea Moreno
Special Olympics El Salvador
Luis Torres
Special Olympics Panamá
Patricia Peralta
Special Olympics Honduras
Rosalino Chávez
Special Olympics Paraguay
Ruth Alvarez
Special Olympics Panamá
Mohammed Abbad
Special Olympics Morocco
Esraa Al Khatib
Special Olympics Jordan
Abdulrhman Al Raqadi
Special Olympics Oman
Qais Alquibaisi
Special Olympics United Arab Emirates
Ahmad Antar
Special Olympics Lebanon
Hussain Darwish
Special Olympics Bahrain
Sherif Nada
Special Olympics Egypt
Nada Rachid
Special Olympics Tunisia
Youssef Ramadan
Special Olympics Egypt
Bruce Clarke
Special Olympics Texas
Dallas Sorken
Special Olympics Alberta Canada
David Duncan
Special Olympics Jamaica
Heidi Mallett
Special Olympics Prince Edward Island Canada
Julia Romualdi
Special Olympics Ontario Canada
Kellie Simmons
Special Olympics Trinidad and Tobago
Kelvin Layne
Special Olympics Barbados
Lisa Noble
Special Olympics Illinois
Mary-Ellen Powers
Special Olympics Rhode Island
Raedian Felix
Special Olympics Dominica
Raymond Ervin
Special Olympics Alabama
Torben Schuffert
Special Olympics British Columbia
World Games Berlin 2023
Special Olympics World Games Berlin 2023 was held in Berlin, Germany. The Games were held 17 – 25 June 2023 and were composed of 24 summer sports