WRAL provided coverage of the opening ceremonies of the 1999 Special Olympics World Summer Games held at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina. The competition venues were primarily located in Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill between June 26 and July 4, 1999. A few events were held in neighboring towns of Cary, Pittsboro, and Garner.
Special Olympics was created by Eunice Kennedy Shriver when she saw how unjustly and unfairly people with intellectual disabilities were treated. She also saw that many children with intellectual disabilities didn’t even have a place to play. She decided to take action. The first International Special Olympics Summer Games were held at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois, USA on July 20, 1968.
In this video, you’ll watch the international athletes representing their countries march through the stadium. Learn how North Carolina became the host of this massive event that became the largest international sporting held in North Carolina.