[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 12352]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              2015 SPECIAL OLYMPICS WORLD GAMES RESOLUTION

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JANICE HAHN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 24, 2013

  Ms. HAHN. Mr. Speaker, after over a decade abroad, the Special 
Olympics World Games are returning to the United States. Two years from 
today, thousands of athletes, coaches, volunteers and supporters will 
descend on Los Angeles to see and cheer the skills and accomplishments 
of people with intellectual disabilities.
  The Special Olympics were started by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who saw 
how unjustly and unfairly people with intellectual disabilities were 
treated, and how many children with intellectual disabilities didn't 
even have a place to play. Her vision grew into the Special Olympics, 
and in 1968 the first International Special Olympics Summer Games were 
held in Chicago. For 45 years, the Special Olympics has harnessed the 
power of sport to create a better world by fostering the acceptance and 
inclusion of all people.
  I could not be prouder that my city and my country are hosting these 
games. And I want the athletes, their loved ones, and those with 
intellectual disabilities across the world to know that the United 
States House of Representatives is with them.
  So today, two years before the 2015 Special Olympics World Games 
open, I am introducing a celebratory resolution with Representative 
Kennedy--who is continuing his family's commitment to the Special 
Olympics--Representative Hoyer, and the full bipartisan Los Angeles 
delegation. I hope our colleagues will join us in supporting these 
games, and the achievements of those with intellectual disabilities 
everywhere.

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