The Special Olympics Committee of Guyana has selected six athletes with intellectual disabilities to begin training shortly at the Colgrain and Castellani pools for the 2011 Special Olympics in Athens, Greece from June 25th to July 4th.

National Director for Special Olympics in Guyana, Wilton Spencer, told Stabroek Sport yesterday that while they have chosen six athletes  only two will be able to attend the games of the 13th Special Olympics .

Spencer noted that Special Olympics World Summer Games Committee stipulated only two athletes from Guyana will be able to participate.

He said currently his committee was working on the logistics for getting the athletes, whose names will not be disclosed at this time, to the games since it is costly to send the athletes to Greece. In the meanwhile, the athletes will be working with national swimming coach Stephanie Fraser, who is currently training teachers of Special Schools to work with persons with disabilities.

The Special Olympics are for persons with intellectual disabilities. This is a generalized disorder, characterized by significantly impaired cognitive functioning and deficits in two or more adaptive behaviors with onset before the age of 18.