Become an athlete - Eligibility Requirements

Become an athlete - Eligibility Requirements

Special Olympics New York offers children and adults with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to train and compete in authentic, quality sports at the local, state, national and even international level.

We currently offer 22 sports for individuals ages 8 and up throughout the year, over the course of three seasons.

ELIGIBITLY REQUIREMENTS

Special Olympics New York athletes must be at least 8 years old and identified by an agency or professional as having one of the following:

  • Intellectual disabilities
  • Cognitive delays as measured by formal assessment
  • Significant learning or vocational problems due to cognitive delay that require or required specially designed instruction

Parallel to this core sports program, we support three seasons of Unified Sports, where teams are comprised of athletes both with and without intellectual disabilities.

We also offer a Young Athletes Program that introduces the concept of inclusive sports to children up to age 7, preparing them for our core sports program with activities important to mental and physical development such as running, balance, and throwing/catching. Young Athletes is open to children of all abilities.