This summer was marked by the exciting Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris. We witnessed sports and humanity and their best, and most of us were glued to the TV each night watching highlights and staying up way past our bedtimes. Athletes at the top of their game were pursuing their dreams, as well as personal and Olympic records, and proudly representing their country.
While this was on an international stage, it’s important to recognize the amazing athletes in our region who are also pursuing their own athletic dreams. Washington, DC, has a robust Special Olympics program. Special Olympics DC “offers year-round sports training and competition opportunities in 10 Olympic-type sports. The sports seasons culminate in three multi-sport championships: Summer Games, Fall Sports Classic, and Winter Sports Classic.” Special Olympics DC is part of the worldwide Special Olympics program, which is “a global sports movement of people creating a new world of inclusion and community, where every single person is accepted and welcomed, regardless of ability or disability.” Since the first Special Olympics summer games in the summer of 1968, the Special Olympics program has grown to over 227 national and state programs in 177 countries and jurisdictions. We are fortunate in DC to have a Special Olympics organization that is devoted to ensuring that our youngest District residents get the chance to participate in this amazing program.
In order to participate in Special Olympics programming, athletes must have a sports physical and be cleared by a medical practitioner. There can be many barriers to getting this sports physical: parents have to take time off of work to bring their athletes to the doctor, athletes may miss school or other important therapies to go to the appointment, and demand for doctor’s appointments in general is high. So, to address these issues and ensure that athletes could participate in Special Olympics DC programming this year, the DC Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Children’s National Hospital and Special Olympics DC formed a partnership to provide sports physicals to athletes. The event was held on September 4, 2024, at St. Coletta’s of Greater Washington Special Education Charter School. The school gymnasium was buzzing with excited students and staff. As one staff member said to me, “It’s so exciting to watch the students achieve milestones through Special Olympics.” Below is a photo of Children’s National Hospital, DC AAP, GW Medical Students and Special Olympics team members partnering together on September 4, 2024 to provide sports physicals for Special Olympics athletes.
In a true team effort, pediatric physicians, pediatric residents and medical students partnered with the Special Olympics team and St. Coletta’s to perform sports physicals for 48 athletes. Dr. Jessica Weisz, pediatrician at Children’s National Hospital, CHAI Affiliate Faculty member, and President of the DC Chapter of the AAP, said “For pediatricians to meet student-athletes at school, where students felt at home, was wonderful and the student-athlete’s enthusiasm was contagious! A huge thank you to the Special Olympics staff – we could not have done it without their expertise.” Dr. Nicola Brodie, Medical Director of the Complex Care Program at Children’s National, said, “It was such a great opportunity to get out of the clinic and into the community and work collaboratively with St. Coletta’s School and Special Olympics to decrease barriers to participation in a program that can meaningfully impact our patients’ health outcomes. I can’t wait to cheer on these student athletes in action this season!”
Header photo from Special Olympics DC
About the author
Danielle G. Dooley, MD, MPhil, FAAP
Medical Director, Community Affairs and Population Health within the Child Health Advocacy Institute at Children's National Hospital
