Yemen Special Olympians: Yes, I can! Be with me

The Special Olympics kicked off in the 22 of May Hall in Sana'a on 24th of February and will continue through 25th. Thousands of parents and fans  are still amazed by the big victory achieved by Yemen’s Special Olympians team when they won the Hokey World Cup in Idaho in 2009, flocked to the 22nd of May Hall to attend the inauguration ceremony of the fourth Special Olympics. Waving Yemen’s flags, thousands of fans and parents kept applauding and cheering for the Special Olympians from 8 different provinces entering the hall. All participants and even fans chanted the Yemeni national anthem loudly, waving flags at the inauguration ceremony. The participants said they were amazed by the great attendance and fans that insisted to take part in this very special event.

Sitting in his wheelchair, waving Yemen’s flag and smiling, the 24-old Mohammed Ali al-Sharabi said that he was so honored by this huge turnout and that this was the greatest event in his life. “It is difficult to describe my great feeling and happiness for this large participation in this special Olympics,” said al-Sharabi. “I believe that when the Yemeni Special Olympians team won gold medals and won the worlds’ hokey cup, this inspired thousands of Yemenis to come here and say thanks. We are so proud,” said al-Sharabi.

Next to him, a 19-year-old girl in her wheelchair said she that was so happy about the great attendance. “Look, all seats are completely full; This means we are well integrated with society,” said Zelikha al-Kawkabani.

“This is my best day of my life,” said the table tennis medal winner, Faten Abdu Mohammed. She added that the great attendance made her proud despite the fact that most of them were disabled. “I’m so happy that this event was attended by Ahmad Ali Abdullah Saleh and by three ministers,” she said.

The Minister of Youth and Sports, Hamoud Obad, praised the role played by the Yemeni special Olympics in rehabilitating persons with special needs and making them effective communal figures, pointing out that the establishment of this event is considered a positive step for them.

 "The youth with special needs who are overcoming their disabilities are like a morning breeze to Yemen, because they are our future voice and ambition. They are the country's bright creative aspiration and heroes of the home land," Obad added.

This came in the opening of the special Yemeni Olympics, held Wednesday at 22 May Hall under the slogan "Yes I can, be with me." This logo was handwritten by the special needs participants. Eight governorates have participated in this event. The participating governorates are Sana'a, Capital Secretariat, Aden, Lahj, Taiz, Hadramout, al-Houdeidah and Abyan. The number of players, coaches and volunteers participating in the event amounted to 800.

Amen Abdulwahab, the Special Olympics Regional Chairman, emphasized that Yemen is making wonderful strides in their program and their care for people with special needs. “However,” he said, “the road ahead of them in this field is still long.” He expressed his pleasure for having been invited to the event and expressed readiness for future cooperation with Yemen.

 Abdul Hafiz al-Kaldi, from Lahj, spoke on behalf of the players, thanking the audience for their attendance and considering it to be a support to all humanity. He promised to raise the name of Yemen adding that, "We want to learn, we want to play and we want to draw a smile on the faces of our parents."  The Awareness Authority Executive Manager, Arif al-Zooka, said that the Authority is launching an awareness campaign, and he called the officials, private firms and civil societies to exert efforts for the integration of this category into the community in order to make them effective and positive figures. He said that despite the difficulties and obstacles these young people face they were able to achieve scientifically-advanced ranks, winning a number of awards, medals and prizes at the local and international levels.

He pointed out that the real disability is not the physical disability but the mental one by the people who believe they are not disabled, calling all Yemenis to preserve the unity and stability of the homeland.

Haley Sweetlands, an American volunteer, said she was pleased for having a full house all waving Yemen's flags. "There is a lot of excitement especially when the wheelchairs came in and the crowd applauded," said Haley.

The ceremony was attended by the Minister of Communication and Information Technology, Kamal al-Jabri, The minister of Youth and Sports, Hamoud Obad, Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, Faris Sanabani, the Special Yemeni Olympics Chairman, Chairman of al-Saleh Development Foundation, Ahmed al-Isi, General Manager of Football Federation, and It is notable that the Yemeni Special Olympics is a member of the International Special Olympics which is a sports program for the training and development of the 'mentally disabled' players. This category has a capacity beyond the expectations of experts in the sports activities field. The Special Olympics program continued on developing and it now contains over 200 programs in more than 150 countries around the world. It has about 2.5 million athletes around the world.

Mr. Faris Sanabani, Chairman of the Yemeni Special Olympics, emphasized that the Fourth Yemeni Special Olympics are distinctive with over 800 participants, consisting of 380 players, 120 coaches and over 200 volunteers.

The tournament, which includes competitions in soccer, table tennis, athletics and botchy, will be held in 4 different halls. A group of international players from the Yemeni Special Olympics will take part in the competition.

The Special Olympics is for the mentally handicapped. The participants tend to be marginalized within society leaving them with small voices within their communities; however, they speak the language of achievements and excellence at the global level.

“This competition is distinguished through its unitary message, because we have people from all over Yemen participating,” Sanabani explained.

“When I first thought of the inauguragetion, I determined it should be at the 22nd of May Hall. I received many emails  from advisors discouraging such a large auditorium, suggesting that I choose a smaller facility. They said it was impossible to fill the hall, that only a political event would do it. On the day of inauguration, the people proved the advisors wrong. Humanity is more powerful than politics,” said Sanabani. He gave special thanks  to all who cooperated with the Special Olympics and contributed to this tournament.

Related Content

•   Female genital circumcision still on the rise in Yemen
•  Jews in land of nightingales
•   Alcohol sells from hidden points in Yemen
•  IRIN: Fighting in north Yemen leads to fresh displacements
•  Yemen President’s visit to the United States has other purposes than medical treatment
•  YEMEN: Little hope of swift return for Abyan IDPs, says report
•   African refugees to Yemen surpass expectation, says UN report
•   Al- Hujrain, Yemen’s treasure trove
•  Campaign in Yemeni to revolt against Qat
•   IRIN: Yemen coping with unrest - aid workers turn to the community