Delhi Chief Minister inaugurates Special Olympics National Games

D.N.I.S. News Network – Less than a week from World Disability Day on 3 December, Delhi Chief Minister inaugurated Special Olympics National Games at an impressive ceremony in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on 28 November.

Before the inauguration of the five-day event, goodwill ambassador for the games Bollywood star Akshay Kumar took part in the torch run from the National Stadium to the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. About a thousand disabled and non-disabled children performed on the theme song for the games, which is based on movement therapy for which the children had been practising for over two months. Singers Shibani Kashyap and Vipin Aneja also presented songs.

Delhi is represented by 300 disabled athletes from schools like Aanchal Charitable Trust, Air force Golden Jubilee Institute, Akshay Pratisthan, Amar Jyoti Rehabilitation Centre, Four Steps, Muskaan, Sahan, Vasant Valley, Tamanna, NIMH, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Okhla Centre, Kulachi Manovikas, Balwant Rai Mehta, Masoom and Delhi Brotherhood Society. More than 500 competitions will be held at the event that takes place every four years.

Around 600 coaches and escorts will accompany 1,500 athletes representing various Indian states as well as a team from Pakistan. Observers from Sri Lanka have also been flown in.

Among the events on the sidelines of the Games is a Youth Summit during which Member of Parliament Sachin Pilot and business tycoon Navin Jindal will address 32 disabled athletes and their non-disabled counterparts. The athletes are also being trained in journalism and their stories will be published in the Youth Summit magazine.