At the invitation of Timothy Shriver, Chairman of Special Olympics, Mr. Li Xikui, Secretary General of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), led a delegation to attend the opening ceremony of the 15th Special Olympics World Summer Games held in United Arab Emirates on March, 14.
During the activity, Secretary General Li Xikui met with Mr.Timothy Shriver, Chairman of Special Olympics, Mme. Patricia Marroquín, the First Lady of Guatemala, Mr. Charles Nyambe, Regional President and Managing Director for Special Olympics Africa Region, Mr. David S. Evangelista, Regional President and Managing Director for Special Olympics Europe Eurasia Region, and others. They had a discussion on the topic of concerning about the development of the disabled and the establishment of the friendly cities, and reached a consensus. Secretary General Li Xikui also attended Global Inclusive Health Forum, Health Plans for athletes and other side events.
It is the first time that the Special Olympics World Games is being held in the Middle East and North Africa. A total of 7, 500 athletes from more than 190 countries and regions participated in this Special Olympics. It is the ninth time for China to take part in the Special Olympics World Summer Games. Over 100 athletes were organized to participate in ten sports events, such as, swimming, basketball and etc..
Special Olympics was founded by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, a member of American Kennedy family. The first Special Olympics competition was held in Chicago in 1968. Special Olympics organization was founded in the same year as an international non-profit organization to hold the Special Olympics World Games. Its current Chairman Timothy Shriver visited CPAFFC on December 5, 2018. Both sides had achieved initial cooperation intention in the fields of sport, diplomacy, public welfare activities on Special Olympics.
