Different kind of fun

... as the intellectually challenged enjoy their very own Avurudu Olimpics :

It was a fun filled occasion. With the bright sunny skies, flowering trees and the sound of the koha’s (koel) mating cries filling the air, it seemed that the Sun God had gone out of His way to shower his blessings to the very special guests at the Bak Maha Special Olympics festival, which was being held at the Mount Mary Railway Children’s playground.

At the entrance of the playground, now transformed into a veritable carnival of colours decked out with flags, banners and tents, stood the organisers - Special Olympics Sri Lanka (SOS) who welcomed the 600 participants, most of whom were children, all of them with intellectual disabilities.

Hailing from districts scattered across the country, from Colombo to Galle, Hambantota, Ambalangoda, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Kandy among others, they belonged to the local branches of the SOS and the tents that dotted the playground were each stamped with their unique culture. Ambalangoda showcased its proud heritage of masks, while the Jaffna tent was decorated with palmyrah palms and banana leaves, its floor decorated with colourful kolam designs...

The children even wore clothes that identified them with their district - sarongs, sarees, lama sarees, to name a few.

Watching them taking part in the bun eating competition, the aliyata es thebeema (marking the eye on the elephant), the sack race, fancy dress parade, the organisers shared their joy and achievements and rewarded their efforts with gifts.

As Chairman of Special Olympics Serendib (SOS - Sri Lanka) Dr Nimal Kariyawasam observed, “We have researched evidence that those with intellectually disabilities often excel in sports activities - and this is no exception”.

Noting that Sri Lanka had over 650,000 persons with intellectual disabilities, he said participation in sporting activities went beyond a mere physical exercise in the case of such persons. “Sports is a therapy, which gives significant improvement to mental strength, which is not gained through long term education in classrooms. This has been proved by international studies. Our aim is thus to empower individuals with intellectual disabilities to be physically fit, productive and respected members of society through sports.”

Evidence

It is this message that SOS Sri Lanka which was founded in 2004 and re-organised in 2012, is carrying to all its branches spread throughout the island - from Colombo, to the deep south in once neglected villages as Hambantota, Matara, Galle, Ambalangoda to the North Central Provinces at Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa to Jaffna and the central hills of Kandy, where both adults and children with intellectually low capacities are provided year-round sports training so that they may excel in a variety of Olympics types sports.

What is more, the organisers have a clutch of medals which the participants won at various international Special Olympics to prove that, given the opportunity, and training by professional coaches dealing with the intellectually impaired, these special athletes can outshine their competitors at any international Special Olympics sporting events

Take a look at their record:

In 2011, SOS Sri Lanka participated at the Special Olympics at Athens, Greece, winning 11 Gold medals and five silver medals and one bronze medal. In 2013, it participated at the Special Olympics World Games in Sydney, Australia, where the 20 Special Athletes collectively won five gold medals, four silver and 8 bronze medals.

No wonder the organisers are confident that come April 22 when seven of their athletes leave for the Special Olympics 2015 at Los Angeles, USA, they will return with a bagful of medals.

Of the events themselves, Dr Kariyawasam says he had entered the athletes for games they could easily take part in and which will best bring out their team spirit and showcase their innate talents and skills at sports.

Medals

“Usually we have around eight sporting events which such athletes take part in during these Special Olympics. They include; Athletics, Table Tennis, Badminton, Volleyball, Cricket, Football (soccer) and Rocce, an Italian sport now becoming very popular in Sri Lanka as well. At the forthcoming Olympics at Los Angeles, they will be entering the Badminton and Athletic events”, he says.

One of the highlights of the Special Olympics is its Unified Sports concept. “This is important because it provides inclusion through bringing together people with intellectual disabilities (known as athletes) and people without such disabilities (known as unified partners), to rain and compete on the same team and same competitions.

“What we do is to get people with normal levels of intellectual abilities to co-ordinate the games and see they run smoothly. But the actual participants will be the intellectually impaired persons. Unified sports participants can improve their physical fitness, sharpen skills, and challenge them through competition while at the same time giving them an opportunity to take part in a variety of Olympic type sports. Mixed teams provide an opportunity to also raise awareness and overcome prejudice against intellectual disabilities, Kariyawasam says. In addition to these year round programs SOS also conducts Athletic leadership programs (ALPS) and a special Young Athletes Program. “We are encouraged at the response to these programmes with so many wanting to follow them”, Kariyawasam says.

Social worker

A social worker who has never forgotten his homeland despite living for over three decades in the UK, Kariyawasam says he has always been deeply interested in improving the quality of those with disabilities - whether mental or physical, and especially those with impaired intellectual levels.

“Their numbers are growing and despite more awareness and more inputs by the state, the facilities are just not enough for them to have the quality of life that those in the more affluent countries enjoy. Which is why our programs are so important especially since sports helps them physically and mentally”.

In recognition of his charitable work over the years to promote this cause, by the Special Olympics International (SOI), he was appointed Chairman of SOS Sri Lanka in 2012. Since then he says he has re-organised the sports and introduced new events such as Hydro Therapy (Swimming).

As he explains, “Swimming is not just a sport for people with intellectual disabilities. It teaches them life-saving skills that ensures their safety and protection from harm. Because of this, when I took up this post in 2012, I sent a person to Singapore to study this subject to help our special athletes. He in turn has trained many others and we now have over a 100 coaches, training people with impaired intellectual abilities and parents in different parts of the country. The outcome has been very encouraging”.

Disability is a complex word which covers a wide range of disabilities from physical, emotional to intellectual and mental. To these special athletes who have already proved they could scale to Olympic heights with the help of their parents, coaches and their own determination and courage, we have but one wish: that they will return with another bagful of medals to do their Motherland, proud.