World Leaders, United States Presidential Delegation, Sports Greats and Celebrity Guests to Participate in 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai, China

World Leaders, United States Presidential Delegation, Sports Greats and Celebrity Guests to Participate in 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai, China

September 28, 2007

World's Largest Sporting Event of the Year Now Days Away


    WASHINGTON DC, Sept. 28 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Today
Special Olympics announced expected guests of the 2007
Special Olympics World Summer Games, including President
George W. Bush's designated U.S. Presidential Delegation,
who will attend the Opening Ceremonies on 2 October and
will participate in this historic global event. The
delegation will join heads of state HE President Olafur R.
Grimsson of the Republic of Iceland and HE President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo of the Philippines.

    (Logo: http://www.xprn.com.cn/xprn/sa/200611161203.jpg
)

    The U.S. Presidential Delegation will be lead by The
Honorable Margaret Spellings, Secretary of Education.
Additional delegation members include: 

    -- The Honorable Clark T. Randt, Jr., United States
Ambassador to the 
       People's Republic of China; 
    -- The Honorable John H. Hager, Former Assistant
Secretary of Education 
       (Special Education and Rehabilitative Services); 
    -- Mr. Ernie Banks, Member of the National Baseball
Hall of Fame; 
    -- Dr. Lynn Fuchs, Professor of Special Education and
Human Development, 
       Vanderbilt University; 
    -- Ms. Michelle Kwan, Figure Skating Champion and
American Public 
       Diplomacy Envoy; 
    -- Mrs. Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Founder, Special
Olympics; 
    -- Dr. Timothy P. Shriver, Chairman of the Board,
Special Olympics
    -- Ms. Anne Sweeney, Co-Chairman, Disney Media Networks
and President, 
       Disney-ABC Television Group
    -- Mrs. Jennifer Polk Wardlow, International Global
Messenger and Special 
       Olympics North Carolina athlete.

    Additional expected guests of the Special Olympics
World Summer Games include: California Governor Arnold
Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver, Actress and
Singer Vanessa Williams, Coca-Cola President & COO
Muhtar Kent; Actor and World Games spokesperson Colin
Farrell, NBA great Yao Ming, composer and performer Yo Yo
Ma; Actress and Special Olympics Global Ambassador Zhang
Ziyi, Olympic Gold Medalists Edwin Moses, Bart Conner and
Scott Hamilton, social activist Bianca Jagger and Anne
Finucane, Bank of America Chief Marketing Officer and
President for the Northeast. Also expected are First Ladies
from Europe and South America and Ministers from every
continent.

    Special Olympics World Summer Games

    From 2-11 October, Shanghai will welcome nearly 7,500
Special Olympics athletes representing 165 countries to its
city when it hosts the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer
Games. The world's most inspiring athletes will compete in
25 different Olympic-type sports at many of Shanghai's
world-renowned venues.  The 12th Special Olympics World
Summer Games will be the first major multi-sport
competition to take place in China with the 2008 Olympics
and Paralympics Games following the next summer in Beijing.


    "The upcoming Special Olympics World Summer Games
to be held in Shanghai will not only be a spectacular
event, but a historic one offering the Movement a world
stage to showcase the abilities and accomplishments of
people with intellectual disabilities, and fostering a new
global vision of acceptance," said Special Olympics
Chairman and CEO Timothy Shriver.  

    In addition to competitions, the World Games will
feature a series of events aimed at transforming
communities and the lives of the 190 million people
worldwide with intellectual disabilities by promoting
understanding, acceptance and inclusion.  Among the
highlights are: a one-day Global Policy Summit on the
Health and Well-being of People with Intellectual
Disabilities, a Global Youth Summit, a forum for
representative young people to interact with their peers
across the globe and share ideas for involving youth in the
Special Olympics movement; the Special Olympics Healthy
Athletes(R) initiative, in which athletes receive free
health assessments and services; and a symposium to bring
awareness and discussion of issues relevant to people with
intellectual disabilities. 

    Additional information about the 2007 Special Olympics
World Summer Games and competition results are available on
the Special Olympics website at
http://www.specialolympics.org . 

    Special Olympics is an international non-profit
organization dedicated to empowering individuals with
intellectual disabilities to become physically fit,
productive and respected members of society through sports
training and competition.  Founded in 1968 by Eunice
Kennedy Shriver, Special Olympics provides year-round
sports training and competition to 2.5 million adults and
children with intellectual disabilities across 165
countries.  The Special Olympics Movement offers one of the
world's greatest platforms for acceptance and inclusion for
all people--regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or
cultural differences.  Corporate sponsors of Special
Olympics include: adidas, Bank of America, The Coca-Cola
Company, DHL, Mattel, Inc. and Mattel Children's
Foundation, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Find
out how you can become involved at
http://www.specialolympics.org .