SHANGHAI, 15 June 2004 — Basketball hero Yao Ming has joined the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Muhammad Ali and Bono by becoming a Special Olympics Global Ambassador.
The Houston Rockets star has been charged with delivering the Special Olympics message of inclusion for people with intellectual disabilities to a worldwide audience.
He will also work directly with Special Olympics athletes, holding clinics and meetings where the athletes will be able to work with him on a personal level.
“This is an exciting time to support the Special Olympics Movement,” the 2.29 meters tall (7 foot 6 inches) Yao said in a statement.
“Globally, this Movement is making incredible changes in the lives of people with intellectual disabilities and transforming communities around the world.”
Yao’s hometown Shanghai will host the Special Olympics Summer Games in 2007 and he said that he felt “obliged to make a contribution”.
As a Global Ambassador, he joins a select list of international supporters including California’s governor Schwarzenegger, boxing legend Ali, and performers Bono, Vanessa Williams and Jon Bon Jovi.
“Yao Ming’s commitment to the Movement is not only a challenge to the world to think differently about people with intellectual disabilities, but also a declaration of hope to a population that has too often been unrecognized,” Special Olympics chairman and chief executive Timothy Shriver said.
The last Special Olympics were held in Dublin in 2003, featuring 7,000 athletes from more than 50 countries participating in 21 sports.
