• 1968 Games

Eunice Kennedy Shriver looks over Soldier Field on July 20, 1968 as the debut Special Olympics Games get underway. For the first time, people with intellectual disabilities had their own playing field and an appreciative audience to cheer them on. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

Flanked by political and community leaders of Chicago including Mayor Richard Daley, Eunice declares the first Special Olympics Games open. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

Eunice meets and congratulates a number of athletes from the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Institute, the foundation for the benefit of people with intellectual disabilities that funded the first games. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

The 1968 games included track and field, swimming and diving, and a variety of other sports, setting the stage for the Special Olympics World Games to come in later years. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

A variety of track events provides first-time opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities to be considered athletes in their own right. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

Then as now, volunteers coordinate every athletic event, providing essential support that makes the scale of the World Games--and the movement itself--possible. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

At the first Games, and at every Special Olympics games ever since, spectators have surprised and gratified by the superior athletic skills some athletes demonstrate. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

Life guards surrounded the swimming competition in a pool specially erected for the event. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968 Games

When needed, extra help is provided for those athletes who require it, a notion that underlies the Special Olympics goal of helping each athlete reach his or her potential. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968

For the first time in history, people with intellectual disabilities were placed on a podium and publicly rewarded in recognition of their athletic abilities. Special Olympics marks the anniversary of the 1968 games every year. Learn more about the 1968 Games.

• 1968

Eunice clasps the hand of the winner of the first mile run in Special Olympics Games history. Learn more about the 1968 Games.