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ShareKUWAIT: The Kuwaiti delegation for intellectual disabilities from the Kuwaiti Special Olympics will participate in the 12th Special Olympics World Winter Games 2025, hosted by the Italian city of Turin from March 8 to 15, after holding several training camps to prepare the delegation for achieving a national sporting achievement.
Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Kuwaiti Special Olympics, Hana Al-Zawawi, confirmed to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) on Sunday that the spirit of the athletes participating in the World Games is very high, which is a basic motivation to achieve advanced positions that will be added to the country’s record of sporting achievements.
Al-Zawawi said that despite the limited places allocated for training for the winter games inside the country, the delegation exerted great efforts to come out with the best results under the supervision of the technical and administrative staff of the Special Olympics. She pointed out the delegation’s insistence on achieving advanced positions in the World Games, overcoming obstacles, most notably the cold weather, in addition to their unaccustomedness to snow, hoping to achieve a new record that will be credited to Kuwaiti sports, especially athletes with intellectual disabilities.
The delegation consists of three athletes and their parents, in addition to the head of the delegation and the doctor participating in the “health screening” program for all athletes there, affiliated with the Special Olympics.
For his part, the head of the participating delegation, Khaled Al-Nasser, said in a similar statement to (KUNA) that the Kuwaiti athletes participating in the tournament will face strong competition, especially since the participants from different countries are accustomed to cold weather and practicing winter sports, indicating that the technical staff of the Kuwaiti Special Olympics made great efforts to prepare the Kuwaiti athletes with the aim of achieving a new sporting achievement for the country.
Al-Nasser explained that they held camps in Egypt and the Emirates, noting that the Kuwaiti Special Olympics gave the athletes enough time to acquire the necessary skills to face the anticipated confrontation there. He indicated that the participating Kuwaiti delegation consists of Maryam Diab in ice skating, Hajar Al-Rashidi and Abdullah Al-Ali in snow running, expressing his hope to achieve advanced positions similar to the experience of the Kuwaiti Special Olympics athletes who won 21 various medals at the Special Olympics World Summer Games (Berlin 2023).
For her part, child and adolescent psychiatry consultant and accompanying delegation Dr Bibi Al-Amiri expressed to (KUNA) her pride in participating in the Kuwaiti delegation in the World Games, especially since it bears the name of the country and a precious category of the nation’s sons, stressing that the participation of people with mental disabilities from the Kuwaiti Special Olympics is an achievement that carries determination and challenge to overcome various obstacles.
Al-Amiri added that her role in the health program that will be held there under the title (Strong Minds) and concerned with the mental health of athletes includes several aspects, including preparing the appropriate atmosphere for them, especially since they are not accustomed to snow and extreme cold, in addition to examining the impact of being away from home and the diversity of challenges, pointing out the necessity of having this program in light of the high rate of psychological pressures resulting from the competitions.
She explained that the Special Olympics health program includes several other areas, including eye and hearing examinations, physical therapy, and dental treatment, in addition to mental health, which aims to maintain the psychological safety of participating athletes, stressing the endeavor to continue psychological support for athletes on a daily basis in order to achieve advanced numbers for the Kuwaiti delegation participating in the World Games.
It is noteworthy that the 12th Special Olympics World Winter Games 2025 in Turin, Italy, is the largest sporting event for people with intellectual disabilities, as more than 1,500 athletes from 102 countries around the world will compete in 8 diverse winter sports, including mountain skiing, snowboarding, futsal, snow running and others. — KUNA
