SPECIAL OLYMPICS NAMIBIA NATIONAL GAMES ERONGO 2024

Special Olympics Namibia is pleased to announce the Special Olympics Namibia National Games 2024
that will take place in Erongo region. Competition will take place on Friday 31 May and Saturday 1 June
2024, at the Venita Stadium in Swakopmund.
National Games occur every two years alternating between International Summer and Winter Games in
the other 2 years. The Games provide athletes with an intellectual disability an opportunity to
showcase their talents and test their skills against their peers making competition fierce and exciting
for spectators. The two sports codes they will compete in is athletics and soccer.
ATHLETES
Athletes with an intellectual disability from 5 regions across Namibian Special Olympics Chapters will
converge in Erongo, Swakopmund, to compete with the goal of achieving personal bests. Since
Namibia mostly participate in Summer Games with a variety of sport, this opportunity provides an extra
competition experience for athletes before they will be selected at the next National Games (2026) for
Special Olympics World Summer Games, scheduled for 2027 in Santiago, Chile.
We expect 144 athletes and unified partners from 5 regions. The participating regions will be Zambezi,
Kavango East, Khomas, Oshana and the host, Erongo.
Unified partners (individuals without intellectual disabilities from a school or community team) will
compete as a teammate alongside Special Olympics athletes on a Unified Sports Team.
VOLUNTEERS
Special Olympics is a volunteer driven organisation with a head office in Windhoek that grows and
support the project country wide. The Erongo region was selected as the host of this year’s games.
They selected a local organising committee who worked endlessly to make this event possible. All
special Olympics coaches are also volunteers. If you are interested to become a volunteer for the event
please get in contact with Karis Ludick, 0813231151 (flyer attached).
THE PROGRAM
From influencing access and inclusion, to making an economic impact, the event will create an
experience that will be a highlight in the lives of all participants. The Games will be hosted at the Venita
Stadium in combination with a busy additional program from Wednesday 29 May, with the final
competition day on 1 June 2024.
Special Olympics competitions are structured to ensure athletes compete with other athletes of similar
ability in equitable divisions, through a process called divisioning. An athlete’s ability and gender are the
primary factors in the divisioning of a Special Olympics competition. Divisioning is a two-stage process.
When possible, athletes get to compete in a “preliminary round” of their events in order to get a score
or time. The divisions are then set up based on each athlete’s skill level so that each set of competitors
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is closely matched. For team sports, there is a series of short games between teams or an assessment
of the team’s ability by a committee. The committee then decides on the division each team will
compete in. Each division accommodates at least three and no more than eight competitors or teams
of similar ability. Athletes of all ability levels are encouraged to participate, and every athlete is
recognized for his or her performance. Medals and ribbons are awarded in each division at National
Games. The divisioning events will take part on Friday 31 May 2024.
Event Details:
29 May 2024 Young Athletes coaches training 14:00-18:00
30 May 2024 Youth Innovation Event 13:00-15:00
31 May 2024 Divisioning Event 8:30-17:00
Youth Summit 18:00-20:00
1 June 2024 National Games 8:00-18:00
Young Athlete Demonstration 10:00-11:00