Investing in life
The Special Olympics for athletes with special needs has launched a new campaign. Inas Mazhar sees what the activity entails
Under the slogan "Invest in a Life" a Special Olympics campaign launched last week from the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange (CASE) aims at increasing the number of athletes as well as raising funds.
"This year the campaign for Special Olympics has launched 'Invest in a Life', an ambitious goal to reach one million new athletes by 2005 and raise the necessary funding to accomplish this goal," said Ayman Abdel-Wahab, regional managing director of the Middle East and North Africa Special Olympics (MENA).
"The stock exchange, a global symbol of investment, has been selected as the venue to convey the message that an investment in Special Olympics returns a better life for people with mental disabilities," Abdel- Wahab said. "In MENA, the goal is to reach 110,000 Special Olympics MENA athletes by the end of 2005."
On 28 May, CASE announced the start of the Special Olympics campaign, thus conveying a message that an investment in Special Olympics leads to a better life for people, namely those with mental retardation.
"It's part of CASE values to show its commitment to developing the community. The occasion was scheduled to take place on 28 April simultaneously with the stock exchange markets of New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong and London. However, we had to delay it because of the Gulf war," said Sameh El-Torgoman, chairman of the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange.
"We are glad to host such a humanitarian event as part of our 100th anniversary of the Cairo Stock Exchange. A hundred years of solid reputation and continuous effort towards efficiency, transparency along with fair rules and regulations -- CASE is now set to meet the challenges of the future and open the door to endless opportunities, as a state-of-the-art exchange poised to become the gateway for investing in the region," El- Torgoman added.
At the Cairo Stock Exchange a Special Olympics Egyptian athlete, Moustafa Abdel-Hamid, rang the bell which signalled the start of trading that day. The bell also symbolically announced to the world that Special Olympics is not only a good cause but also a good investment and that "Invest in a Life" will transform lives for people with mental retardation worldwide and will ensure those who invest in them.
"With investing, one never knows the consequences of such an act of faith. When you invest in a life, the returns can go beyond your expectations," said Abdel-Wahab. "The return in investment for someone with a mental disability is immeasurable hope, dignity, improved health, a new voice to express his or her most basic human needs, wants and concerns and a chance to achieve in ways that bring life-changing confidence and joy."
Ghada Abdel-Khalek, communications and partnership development manager at MENA, said that for the community, "the investment will trigger human interaction that fosters friendship, ensures leadership, dispels ignorance and reinforces the power of a single act to promote attitudes of acceptance and inclusion in families, neighbourhoods, school and local governments.
"For 35 years, Special Olympics athletes have demonstrated that it is possible to bridge human divisions and to overcome intolerance, prejudice and even strife and war. So why not Invest in a Life now," said Abdel-Khalek.
Ismail Osman, chairman of the Egyptian Special Olympics, said the mission of Special Olympics in Egypt, graced as it is by the auspices of Mrs Suzanne Mubarak, the honorary chairperson, is to provide year- round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic- type sports for children and adults with mental retardation. Osman said the aim was also to give such athletes "continuing opportunities to develop their physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in the sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other special athletes and the community".
A Special Olympics press release says that since its inception and over three decades, Special Olympics has helped define an entirely new vision of a world community, a place defined not by who gets excluded but who gets included, a place where differences are cause not for castigation but celebration.
C a p t i o n :
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : 5 -11 June 2003 (Issue No. 641)
Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/641/sp3.htm