Volleyball, Hermaya Olbia for Social Issues: On the field with the Special Olympics Volleyball Unified

Hermaea Olbia takes the field to the side of the Special Olympics. In the coming weeks, the biancobl club will provide its qualified technicians and facilities to launch specific courses, benefiting from the contribution of local schools and associations working in the field of intellectual disability.

Being a convinced supporter of sport as a tool for social integration, the company, led by Gianni Sarti, will create a unified volleyball team in the upcoming sporting season thanks to the partnership signed with the Sardinian Special Olympics team. A process that will allow Hermaea to become one of the few teams certified in the specialty. “I have always been close to the world of disability, and the commitment to the Italian Paralympic Committee attests to this: that is why, when the opportunity to collaborate with the Special Olympics was born, we wanted to dive into this new and wonderful challenge,” explains President Sarti. “We want to educate the community in general as well as the athletes about the importance of sport as a means of inclusion, and I believe that unified volleyball is the perfect link: this experience can only enrich us from every point of view.”

Special Olympics: Mission – Present in 174 countries, Special Olympics is the largest international sports movement dedicated to people with intellectual disabilities and was founded in the United States in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, one of the sisters of President John F. Kennedy. Nearly 435,000 coaches and more than 1 million volunteers ensure that nearly 6 million athletes have the opportunity to adequately develop their athletic skills in more than 30 different disciplines and participate in competitions.

The Italian Special Olympics regional team promotes inclusive sports in Sardinia through its volunteers and supports public bodies wishing to promote initiatives related to the values ​​of diversity through sports days or cultural events. “The goal of unified volleyball is to create a team in the spirit of the Special Olympics, with partners who have a mission to motivate and encourage their teammates: basically, on the volleyball court, the climate of containment that we would like to see is achieved. Very often in the community,” says Stefania Rosas. , Regional Director of the Special Olympics for Italy.

“In Sardinia, volleyball is often mistakenly thought of as a complex practice for athletes with intellectual disabilities, but experiences gained in national games and events such as ‘Bear Wool Volley’ teach us that this is not the case,” adds Sardinia, director. “L’Hermaea, whom we thank for the great sensitivity to this issue, can only be an impetus for the development of unified volleyball on our island: the goal is to organize knowledge meetings with schools and associations in the Gallura region. To feel that they are an integral part of this new project Unified sport is the path to a more inclusive future.”

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