Eligibility
To be eligible to participate in Special Olympics, athletes must be at least 8 years old and identified by an agency or professional as having one of the following conditions: intellectual disability; a cognitive delay as determined by standardized measures such as intelligence quotient or other generally accepted measures; or a closely related development disability, i.e., functional limitations in both general learning and adaptive skills. There is no cost to participate in Special Olympics. All prospective athletes must register to participate in Special Olympics.

Age Requirements
There is no maximum age limitation for participation in Special Olympics. The minimum age requirement for participation in Special Olympics competition is 8 years of age. An Accredited Program may permit children who are at least 6 years old to participate in age-appropriate Special Olympics training programs offered by that Accredited Program, or in specific (and age-appropriate) cultural or social activities offered during the course of a Special Olympics event. However, no child may participate in a Special Olympics competition (or be awarded medals or ribbons associated with competition) before his or her 8th birthday.

Identifying Persons with Intellectual Disabilities
How prevalent are intellectual disabilities? Intellectual disability knows no boundaries. It cuts across the lines of racial, ethnic, educational, social and economic backgrounds, and it can occur in any family. According to the WHO ’s World Health Report 2001, the overall prevalence of intellectual disabilities in the world is believed to be between 1 percent and 3 percent, i.e., as many as 190 million people have intellectual disabilities — the largest disability population in the world.

In the context of Special Olympics, the term “intellectual disabilities” is a synonym for mental retardation. Therefore, Special Olympics uses the definition of intellectual disabilities/mental retardation provided by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations’ specialized agency for health. According to the WHO, intellectual disability is a condition of arrested or incomplete development of the mind characterized by impairment of skills and overall intelligence in areas such as cognition, language, and motor and social abilities. Intellectual disability can occur with or without any other physical or mental disorders. Although reduced level of intellectual functioning is the characteristic feature of this disorder, the diagnosis is made only if it is associated with a diminished ability to adapt to the daily demands of the normal social environment. (Visit www.who.int for more information.)

A person is considered to have an intellectual disability for purposes of determining his or her eligibility to participate in Special Olympics if that person satisfies any one of the following requirements:

The person has been identified by an agency or professional as having an intellectual disability as determined by their localities; or

The person has a cognitive delay, as determined by standardized measures such as intelligent quotient or "IQ" testing or other measures that are generally accepted within the professional community in that Accredited Program's nation as being a reliable measurement of the existence of a cognitive delay; or

The person has a closely related developmental disability. A "closely related developmental disability" means having functional limitations in both general learning (such as IQ) and in adaptive skills (such as in recreation, work, independent living, self-direction, or self-care).

However, persons whose functional limitations are based solely on a physical, behavioral, or emotional disability, or a specific learning or sensory disability, are not eligible to participate as Special Olympics athletes, but may be eligible to volunteer for Special Olympics as partners in Unified Sports®, if they otherwise meet the separate eligibility requirements for participation in Unified Sports set forth in the Sports Rules.

Degree of Disability
Participation in Special Olympics training and competition is open to all persons with intellectual disabilities who meet the age requirements, regardless of the level or degree of that person's disability, and whether or not that person also has other mental or physical disabilities, so long as that person registers to participate in Special Olympics as required.