Sport for the mentally handicapped

A symposium about sport for the mentally handicapped was organized by the Foundation Sports for the Mentally Handicapped S.G.K. from September 20-25, 1982 in The Hague – The Netherlands. The participants in this symposium were experts on sport for the mentally handicapped form the U.S.A. and The Netherlands, invited by the Foundation Sports for the Handicapped S.G.K. organizing committee and Special Olympics Inc. (Washington D.C., U.S.A.). The symposium was held on the occasion of the celebration of two hundred years of diplomatic relations between The Netherlands and the U.S.A. ‘The Bicenttennial’. Simultaneously with the symposium a sports event took place. Dutch and U.S. sport coaches demonstrated their working methods and techniques. The participants in this sports event were both Dutch and U.S. mentally handicapped girls and boys. The purpose of the symposium was the exchange of opinions, knowledge and methods with regard to sport for the mentally handicapped in general and competitive sport in particular. Moreover the desirability of competitive sport for the mentally handicapped has been discussed intensively in The Netherlands during the last 5 years. Accordingly this subject was a central theme during this symposium, considered against the background of the significance of sport for the mentally handicapped in general. The papers presented during this symposium are brought together in this book. The edition is illustrated with photos; some of them taken during the sports event.