Special Olympics Unified Sports®

Eight athletes in gray shirts that read Copper King Coyotes and gold medals around their necks.

Special Olympics Unified Sports® in schools is defined as a fully inclusive sports or fitness program that combines an approximately equal number of students with and without intellectual disabilities.

The Basics

The below resources are available to assist individuals who are just beginning to learn about how Special Olympics Unified Sports can become part of the Unified Champion Schools strategy at their school.

Implementing Unified Sports

Explore these resources for information on how to fully implement Unified Sports activities such as Young Athletes, Unified Sports teams, Unified Physical Education, and fitness

Young Athletes in Unified Champion Schools (Ages 2-7) - Packet (PDF) Visit the Young Athletes Landing Page for more resources.
Unified Physical Education Resources - Guidebook (PDF) A compilation of ideas and examples that teachers may use to bring the Unified Physical Education concept to their school.
Developmental Sports Implementation Guide (Ages 6-12) - Guide (PDF) This guide will address developmental sports activities for children ages 6-12. It is packed with ready-to-use resources designed to help schools, communities and coaches effectively offer and implement developmental sports activities. Visit the Developmental Sports Landing Page for more resources.
Special Olympics Fitness Guide for Schools - Guidebook (PDF) Supporting school-based implementation of Special Olympics Fitness programming encouraging student with and without intellectual disabilities to achieve optimal health and performance. Espanol
Administering Special Olympics Unified Sports at the HS Interscholastic Level - Guide (PDF) This resource created by NFHS and Special Olympics provides guidelines for administering Unified Sports when it is treated as an officially sanctioned high school sport.
Special Olympics Unified Sports Experience - Guide (PDF) This guide provides ideas and steps to implement a successful Special Olympics Unified Sports® Experiences. This is a starting point for groups to understand what goes into planning an event and how to provide a meaningful experience for all participants.
Unified Esports and Fitness Guide for Schools (PDF) This guide was developed to help Unified clubs and esports programs implement the 3-component model of Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® (UCS). Readers will learn how to implement fitness, inclusive youth leadership, and whole school engagement components into esports programming.

Coaching

The following resources and landing pages offer further information on coaching various Unified Sports and fitness activities.

Quick Reference Coaching Guide (PDF)
Coaching Unified Sports (NFHS) - Online Course
Unified Sports Access basic information on Unified Sports programming including definitions, coaches training, unified teammate guidelines and more!
Special Olympics Fitness Programs Fitness is the state of optimal health and performance through adequate physical activity, nutrition, and hydration.

Special Olympics Unified Sports®

Access the Unified Champion Schools Playbooks (Elementary, Middle, and High School)

Special Olympics Unified Sports® in Schools - One-Pager (PDF)

A Student's Guide to Unified Sports - Guide (PDF)

GenerationUnified "Sports" Videos

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