Microsoft : Creating a city of inclusion for our country’s Special Olympics athletes

On July 1, 4,000 athletes and coaches from across the country will arrive in Seattle to compete in the 2018 Special Olympics USA Games. Microsoft is proud to be the title sponsor of these games. It will be a special week for all of us - the athletes, the city of Seattle and our region, including Microsoft's employees. As the honorary chairman of this year's USA Games, I'm delighted to welcome athletes from near and far who are coming not just to compete, but to celebrate their well-earned achievements.

What began as a backyard summer camp in the 1960s by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the sister of former President John F. Kennedy, Special Olympics has grown into the world's largest sports organization for people with intellectual disabilities. Shriver recognized how sports brought communities together, encouraged teamwork, built social skills and instilled confidence. She also believed that everyone, no matter their ability, deserved an opportunity to grow, learn and experience joy through sports.

Fifty years after the first games, the Special Olympics boasts more than 5.7 million athletes in 172 countries and more than 1 million volunteers around the world. And while the organization has played a transformative role in the lives of athletes with intellectual disabilities, it also became a global movement of acceptance and inclusion. Through sports, health, school and youth engagement, the organization brings people around the world together, with and without intellectual disabilities, to teach tolerance, unity and respect.

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For Microsoft, it's an honor to sponsor this year's milestone event that celebrates diversity and inclusion in a way no other organization has. 'Diversity and inclusion' is a key component to how we understand and work toward our mission every day: To empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. That's why we've partnered with Special Olympics since 2014, using cloud-based data management to transform how the games are run and how athletes are cared for, while supporting the group's efforts to build a more inclusive global community.

This year, athletes challenge Seattle to 'Rise with Us' and make the 2018 games the most inclusive Special Olympics to date. Already, the games are well on that path with 39 percent of competitors participating in Unified Sports (teams of athletes with and without intellectual disabilities), youth-led leadership initiatives, thousands of volunteer opportunities, and the special events designed for the broader community to participate. And this summer's games will be one of the largest sporting events ever to come to our city, with an expected 50,000 spectators.

As the Pacific Northwest prepares for the arrival of the 2018 Special Olympics USA Games, state and local leaders, businesses, organizations and individuals have an important role to play in creating a region that welcomes everyone. This summer's games are about much more than sports. They're about creating a city of inclusion where everyone is welcome and can contribute their talents and skills.

One of the best ways you can show the world this spirit of inclusion is to support the games. Attend the opening ceremonies, to be held on July 1 at the University of Washington's Husky Stadium. Cheer on athletes who will be competing in 14 sports at events across the region. Volunteer for one of the 10,000 positions needed to make these games a success.

This summer's games offer the opportunity for each of us to ask important questions, challenge our biases, learn together and act collectively to create more inclusive communities. In other words, this year's USA Games will require each and every one of us to rise to the occasion and show the world what the Special Olympics - and Seattle - stand for.

Tags: 2018 Special Olympics USA Games, Brad Smith, inclusion, Special Olympics