Impact Report 2025-26

When Special Olympics BC – Penticton athlete Angela Klein first joined Special Olympics, she planned to give it a try for just one year. Twenty-six years later, she's still involved and says the movement has changed her life.

"I'm grateful for the friends and incredible people I have met and the incredible confidence Special Olympics has brought to life in me."

The swimmer delivered a standout performance at the Special Olympics BC Summer Games, reaching the podium in all of her events. The achievement carried deep personal meaning as she reflected on her late mother and sister.

"When I realized I earned medals in all of my events, I cried," Angela said. "I thought, 'Mommy, can you see me? ... Sissy, are you proud of me? I did it.'"

Her success in these Games earned her a place on Special Olympics Team BC 2026, where she focused on doing her best and proving to herself that she can achieve anything, in and out of the pool.

"Special Olympics will change your life, believe me, I know. I USED to be one of the shyest, most introverted people around. But NOW? You can't make me be quiet, unless I'm underwater!"

After months of training in their year-round Special Olympics programs in communities across B.C., Special Olympics Team BC showed their skills, sportsmanship, and unstoppable spirit at the 2026 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games in Medicine Hat, Alberta.

By the numbers, this was one of Special Olympics BC’s biggest and most dedicated provincial teams ever.

• 243 athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities

• 97 volunteer coaches and mission staff

• From 42 communities

• 10 Special Olympics Canada summer sports

• 104 gold medals, 125 silver medals, 135 bronze medals

Skills, team spirit, and the joy of sport were on full display when more than 1,100 athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities competed in the 2026 Special Olympics BC Winter Regional Qualifiers!

Thanks to the dedicated efforts of volunteers, families, sponsors, and supporters, 28 Regional Qualifiers were hosted in 22 communities in all parts of the province. Athletes competed in 5-pin bowling, alpine skiing, cross country skiing, curling, figure skating, floorball, snowshoeing, and speed skating.

These Regional Qualifiers gave athletes the chance to challenge themselves, feel the joy of being part of a team, and seek to qualify for spots in the 2027 Special Olympics BC Winter Games.

The 2027 Special Olympics BC Winter Games snow sports are set to be hosted in Kelowna February 5 to 7, and ice and floor sports in Richmond March 26 to 28.

People with intellectual disabilities face challenges accessing health care and equal opportunities for healthy activity. As a result, they experience dramatically higher rates of serious health concerns than peers without intellectual disabilities.

Special Olympics BC is committed to working with partners in our province and offering health programs, with the goal to create a world where people with intellectual disabilities have the same opportunities and access to health care as people without intellectual disabilities. That helps Special Olympics athletes to be at their best on and off the playing field.

Special Olympics BC’s game-changing health programming includes:

• Special Olympics Healthy Athletes screenings, which provide important health education and referrals for necessary care within a supportive setting;

• Health advocacy training programs, which help empower athletes to lead the way to healthy lifestyles and inclusive health systems; and

• Weekly physical activity programs in communities across the province, including Club Fit (fitness training) and Fit Families & Friends (summer program).

Many children with intellectual disabilities feel left behind or isolated in traditional sport and activity programs. In Special Olympics, they belong and thrive.

Special Olympics BC offers Active Start and FUNdamentals programs in communities around the province, where children and youth with intellectual disabilities ages two to 11 learn vital motor, sport, and social skills in a fun and welcoming environment.

Active Start and FUNdamentals programs are offered at low or no cost and have been specifically designed to meet the needs of children with intellectual disabilities and their families.

Participants build essential skills that help them throughout their lives, and also are empowered to transition successfully into Special Olympics BC’s sport and fitness programs to find lifelong healthy activity and community.

In 2025-26, 222 Special Olympics BC Active Start and FUNdamentals athletes-in-training thrived in their weekly programs in 14 communities across the province, marking a 40 per cent growth in participation.

Special Olympics BC is dedicated to working with schools and districts across the province to build inclusive school communities. Special Olympics BC Unified Sports® programs are being offered in schools around the province to empower youth with and without intellectual disabilities to change the world through sports.

We know that training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding. Special Olympics Unified Sports programs bring together students with and without intellectual disabilities to train and compete as teammates.

Teams practice and compete together, just like any other school team, and they open hearts and minds to the abilities of students with intellectual disabilities along the way. Students with and without intellectual disabilities make new friends, develop skills and self-esteem, and break down barriers through inclusive sport and learning experiences.

“This experience means a lot to our kids,” Burnaby coach Jarrett Richardson says. “It gives the kids the opportunity to connect in a different capacity, and it extends further than the court. It goes into our hallways and there’s camaraderie in our hallways. There’s less students being separate. It’s now an inclusive environment in the halls. And that’s thanks to the inclusive environment on the court. Thank you, Special Olympics, for all your support.”

Through Special Olympics BC Athlete Leadership programs, athletes build their abilities and confidence to take on a range of leadership roles including public speaking, creating advocacy and media content, participating on Local Committees and Athlete Input Councils, and assisting as program volunteers.

Athlete Leadership programs are proven to have a lasting benefit to participants by increasing confidence and self-esteem, and a lasting benefit to Special Olympics as these athlete leaders provide invaluable feedback and insights.

Currently, Special Olympics BC – Surrey athlete Susan Wang is serving as one of only 10 Special Olympics Sargent Shriver Global Messengers worldwide for the 2024-27 term. Susan is also a valued voice on the Special Olympics Canada Athlete Leadership Council and SOBC Athlete Leadership Council.

In 2025-26, she shared her insights and leadership skills in a wide range of global, national, provincial, and local roles and events that opened hearts and minds to the abilities of people with intellectual disabilities.

In 2025, the Ron and Alma Jones Family Foundation created a transformative $1 million endowment fund for Special Olympics BC. This life-changing gift will ensure that athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities across the province will be able to access inclusive sport opportunities for many years to come.

The Jones Family’s support for Special Olympics BC spans decades, reflecting a heartfelt commitment to inclusion and enriching community. Special Olympics BC is deeply grateful to the Ron and Alma Jones Family Foundation for this incredibly generous gift.