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2017 Special Olympics World Winter Games

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11th Special Olympics World Winter Games
Host cityGraz and Schladming, Austria Austria
MottoHeartbeat For The World (German: Herzschlag für die Welt)
Nations113
Athletes2,277 (1,555 Male & 722 Female)
Events27 events (9 sports)
OpeningMarch 18
ClosingMarch 26
Opened byAlexander Van der Bellen
Summer
Winter

The 2017 Special Olympic World Winter Games (German: 2017 Special Olympics World Winterspiele) officially called 11th Special Olympics World Winter Games is a Special Olympics, a multi-sports event that was held in Austria from March 14 through March 25, 2017.[1]

Overview

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City of Graz which won the bidding and is holding the 11th Winter Special Olympic World Games

It was announced in 2012 that the host city for the 2017 Special Olympics World Winter Games would be Graz and Schladming in Styria, Austria.[2]

The opening and closing ceremonies were broadcast in the United States on ABC and ESPN. Most events were played live or re-aired on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNNEWS throughout the games.[3]

The games

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Reception

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With 113 nations participating all were invited to the Official Reception in Vienna after the teams arrived. At the Reception teams and nations could meet other athletes, take photos and talk to media from all over the world. This was the Special Olympics World Games first time that this event was held. The Reception took place on March 16, 2017, at the Vienna, Rathaus.

Arrivals

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Teams being welcomed at Vienna Airport
(left) France being welcomed at Vienna International Airport by supporters (right) Canada supporters hold the Canadian flag while welcoming the Canadian team to Vienna.

Most athletes arrived at Vienna International Airport on March 14, 2017, and were given Special Austria 2017 necklaces and gear for their stay.

The Austrian government denied the visas for teams from Ghana and Afghanistan, keeping them from competing. The grounds for denial conveyed to the Ghana team were that Austria believed that the athletes would not return to Ghana after the competition. Tim Shriver, chairman of the board of Special Olympics International, said: "On paper, six athletes of more than 2,500 did not attend the 2017 World Games. But for those six, it is a nightmare."[4]

Opening ceremony

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The opening ceremony was on March 18, 2017. The games were officially opened by Alexander Van der Bellen. Jason Mraz and Grace VanderWaal, with a choir of children from Schladming and Special Olympics global messengers, performed "I Won't Give Up." Helene Fischer performed "Fighter".[5]

Nations participating

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  *   Host nation

China at the 2017 Special Olympics Reception in Vienna, Austria
Nations participating
Athletes[6]
Country Male Female Total Events
Africa
 Burkina Faso 7 3 10 floorball
 Ivory Coast 12 7 19 floorball
 Ghana 10 0 10 floorball
 Kenya 12 0 12 floor hockey
 Namibia 13 7 20 floorball
 Nigeria 20 0 20 floorball, floor hockey
 South Africa 18 6 24 floor hockey, figure skating, speed skating
 Uganda 16 0 16 floor hockey
Asia-Pacific
 Afghanistan 2 2 4 snowshoeing
 Australia 9 3 12 alpine skiing, snowboarding
 Bangladesh 15 13 28 floor hockey
Bharat 45 45 90 alpine skiing, floorball, floor hockey, figure skating,
snowboarding, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Indonesia 8 0 8 floorball
 Malaysia 2 2 4 snowshoeing
 New Zealand 10 3 13 alpine skiing, snowboarding
 Pakistan 6 6 12 cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
Serendib 6 2 8 floorball
 Singapore 13 1 14 floorball, speed skating
East Asia
 China 44 32 76 cross-country skiing, floor hockey, figure skating, speed skating
snowshoeing
 Chinese Taipei 26 14 40 floor hockey, figure skating, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Hong Kong 31 16 37 floor hockey, figure skating, speed skating, snowshoeing
Nippon 37 17 54 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floor hockey, figure skating,
snowboarding, speed skating, snowshoeing
 South Korea 46 19 65 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floor hockey, figure skating, snowboarding
 Macau 5 5 10 figure skating, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Mongolia 12 2 14 cross-country skiing, floorball, snowshoeing
Europe\Eurasia
 Andorra 4 1 5 alpine skiing
 Armenia 1 0 1 cross-country skiing
 Austria* 230 90 320 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, floor hockey, figure skating, snowboarding, speed skating, snowshoeing, stick shooting
 Azerbaijan 10 0 10 floorball
 Belarus 9 0 9 cross-country skiing
 Belgium 15 11 26 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 8 8 16 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing
 Bulgaria 4 4 8 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Croatia 19 10 29 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, figure skating, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Cyprus 16 6 22 floorball, floor hockey
 Czech Republic 21 11 32 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, snowboarding
 Denmark 10 4 14 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, figure skating
 Estonia 12 4 16 cross-country skiing, floorball
 Finland 25 9 34 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, figure skating, snowboarding, snowshoeing
 France 16 13 29 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Macedonia 1 0 1 alpine skiing
 Georgia 2 5 7 alpine skiing, figure skating, snowshoeing
 Germany 48 27 75 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, figure skating, snowboarding, speed skating, snowshoeing, stick shooting
 Gibraltar 14 1 15 alpine skiing, floorball, snowshoeing
Great Britain 9 12 21 alpine skiing, figure skating
Hellas 12 2 14 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Hungary 23 10 33 alpine skiing, floor hockey, figure skating, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Iceland 2 2 4 figure skating
Ireland 24 2 26 alpine skiing, floorball
 Isle of Man 9 3 12 floorball, snowshoeing
 Israel 12 2 14 floorball, snowshoeing
 Italy 21 13 34 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing
 Kazakhstan 14 12 26 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, figure skating, snowboarding, snowshoeing
 Kosovo 1 1 2 alpine skiing
 Kyrgyzstan 2 1 3 alpine skiing, speed skating
 Latvia 14 6 20 cross-country skiing, floorball, snowshoeing
 Liechtenstein 4 4 8 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing
 Lithuania 25 4 29 cross-country skiing, floor hockey, snowshoeing
 Luxembourg 13 11 24 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, stick shooting
 Moldova 2 0 2 speed skating
 Monaco 17 6 23 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Montenegro 4 2 6 alpine skiing, snowshoeing
 Netherlands 15 10 25 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowboarding, speed skating
 Norway 23 12 35 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, snowboarding, speed skating
 Poland 32 14 46 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floor hockey, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Romania 9 6 15 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, figure skating, snowshoeing
 Russia 50 29 79 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, floor hockey, figure skating, snowboarding, speed skating, snowshoeing
 San Marino 4 0 4 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Serbia 10 9 19 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing
 Slovakia 10 6 16 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, figure skating
 Slovenia 10 8 18 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Spain 30 22 52 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floor hockey, snowshoeing
 Sweden 30 11 41 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, floor hockey, figure skating, snowshoeing
 Switzerland 38 12 50 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, snowboarding
 Tajikistan 4 4 8 cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Turkmenistan 2 1 3 figure skating, speed skating
 Ukraine 16 2 18 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floor hockey
 Uzbekistan 9 10 19 alpine skiing, figure skating, speed skating, snowshoeing
Latin America
 Argentina 11 5 16 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floorball, snowboarding, snowshoeing
 Chile 4 4 8 alpine skiing, snowboarding
 Costa Rica 18 2 20 floor hockey, snowshoeing
 Cuba 12 0 12 floor hockey
 Dominican Republic 2 2 4 snowshoeing
 Mexico 29 4 33 floorball, floor hockey, figure skating, speed skating
 Uruguay 0 9 0 floorball
 Venezuela 16 6 22 floorball, floor hockey, speed skating, snowshoeing
MENA
 Algeria 16 0 16 floor hockey
 Brunei 2 2 4 snowshoeing
 Egypt 18 2 20 floor hockey, snowshoeing
 Iran 11 0 11 floor hockey
 Iraq 2 2 4 snowshoeing
 Jordan 4 4 8 speed skating, snowshoeing
 Lebanon 5 4 9 cross-country skiing, snowshoeing
 Libya 2 0 2 snowshoeing
 Morocco 16 2 18 floor hockey, snowshoeing
 Oman 2 2 4 snowshoeing
 Palestine 2 0 2 snowshoeing
 Qatar 5 0 5 speed skating, snowshoeing
 Saudi Arabia 6 0 6 speed skating, snowshoeing
 Syria 4 2 6 cross-country skiing, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Tunisia 16 2 18 floor hockey, snowshoeing
 United Arab Emirates 20 3 23 floor hockey, speed skating, snowshoeing
North America
 Canada 68 40 108 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floor hockey, figure skating, speed skating, snowshoeing
 Jamaica 18 0 18 floor hockey, speed skating
 Saint Lucia 12 4 16 floor hockey
 Trinidad and Tobago 10 6 16 floor hockey
 United States 82 57 139 alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, floor hockey, figure skating, snowboarding, speed skating, snowshoeing
1,555 722 2,277

Events

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The following events took place at Austria 2017:[7]

Calendar

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OC Opening ceremony Event competitions 1 Gold medals EG Exhibition gala CC Closing ceremony
March 18
Sat
19
Sun
20
Mon
21
Tue
22
Wed
23
Thu
24
Fri
25
Sat
Gold medals
Ceremonies OC CC
Alpine skiing
Cross-country skiing
Figure skating
Floorball
Floor hockey
Short track speed skating
Snowboarding
Snowshoeing
March 18
Sat
19
Sun
20
Mon
21
Tue
22
Wed
23
Thu
24
Fr
25
Sat
Gold medals

Broadcasting

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The 2017 World Games was broadcast on the following broadcasters in the following country:[8]

References

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  1. ^ "World Games Overview". Special Olympics. 2012-07-17. Archived from the original on 2017-09-08. Retrieved 2013-02-07.
  2. ^ "Special Olympics World Games came to a close Sunday with the traditional extinguishing of..." LATimes. 2 August 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  3. ^ "Special Olympics World Games TV schedule". ESPN.com. 6 March 2017. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  4. ^ "Ghana, Afghanistan denied visas to enter Austria for 2017 Games". ESPN.com. 19 March 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  5. ^ "Helene Fischer stellte bei den Special Olympics in Schladming ihren neuen Song "Fighter" vor". schlagerplametnet.com. 19 March 2017. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  6. ^ "Austria 2017 World Games". Austria2017. 13 March 2017. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  7. ^ Sports & Games. Special Olympics official website. Retrieved 2017-03-13.
  8. ^ "2017 World Winter Games Coverage". specialolympics.org. 2017. Archived from the original on 5 May 2017. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
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Preceded by Special Olympics World Winter Games Succeeded by