Special Olympics Bharat (SOB) has introduced a sports training programme for children below 10 years with intellectual and developmental delays or disabilities at selective Samagra Shiksha Abhiyaan (SSA) centres in five districts in Jharkhand.
SOB started the initiative in collaboration with the Jharkhand Education Project Council (JEPC) SSA and conducted Community Coaches Training Programme and Young Athlete Programme (YAP) in five districts of Jharkhand inclduing Chatra on July 9, Hazaribagh on July 10, Deoghar on July 11, Khunti on July 17 and Lohardaga on July 18. It was the first ever Special Olympics activity conducted in these districts.
Around 25 SSA resource teachers or assistant teachers were given training in a one- day workshop in each of the five districts. The workshop included information on introduction of Special Olympics, types of disabilities, rules and functions of the organization among others.
Special emphasis was given on Young Athlete Programme (YAP), a specially designed programme where training is imparted to young athletes below eight- years to improve their motor skills.
The programme was conducted by the approval of Uma Shankar Singh, State Project Director JEPC. Abhinav Kumar, State Coordinator JEPC had arranged the programme with District Education Officers.
Bailey Bodhanwala, Area Director SOB Jharkhand, said that he is happy with the fact that the Special Olympics Jharkhand is spreading its wings and is able to tap the hidden talents of the State.
SOB is an accredited programme of Special Olympics International with a mission to provide sports training for adults and children below 10 years with intellectual and developmental disabilities or delays. SOB Jharkhand chapter operates from Jamshedpur and has about 40,000 athletes registered with them from across the State.
SOB is recognised by the Government of India as a National Sports Federation and is also registered under the Indian Trust Act 1882 in 2001. It is designed as a Nodal Agency to conduct sports and games for people with disabilities.
“The body looks after the sporting event in the State. There are about 53 athletes who have represented the country and won medals at various events from 2001 to 2019. At the recent world games held in Dubai, seven athletes from Jharkhand participated and won ten medals,” said Satbir Singh Sahota, Assistant Area Director, SOB Jharkhand.
Once the athletes are registered with the organisation, a number is allotted to them through the Games Management System. The minimum age for registration is 8 years and for participating in an international competition the minimum age is 14 years.
The body organises summer as well as winter games. Summer games include aquatics, badminton, athletics, basket ball, hand ball and cycling where as winter games include alpine skiing, roller skating, floor hockey and floor ball.
“In Jharkhand, there are more summer games while the winter games played here are floor hockey, floor ball and roller skating,” Sahota added.
