May SOAR Scoop: USA Games
Special Olympics USA Games
The Special Olympics USA Games are a national sporting event held every four years, bringing together thousands of athletes from across all 50 states to compete in various Olympic-style team and individual sports.
2026 Special Olympics USA Games
The 2026 Special Olympics USA Games took place in Minnesota from June 20–26. Hosted primarily at the University of Minnesota and the National Sports Center in Blaine, the event united 3,000 athletes, 1,500 coaches, and 75,000 fans across 16 team and individual sports. Team Arkansas Diamonds was made up of a 90 member team made up of 68 athletes and Unified partners, and 22 coaches who will compete in 11 sports including Youth Leadership Experience along with 14 delegation support members. The team brought home 24 gold, 7 silver. 43 bronze, 23 4th, 2 5th, 5 6thand 1 8th place awards!
What determines what sports and how many people attend?
Special Olympics USA Games are hosted by an entity called Local Organizing Committee (LOC). a temporary, event-specific organization formed to plan, manage, and execute a specific Special Olympics event, such as a state, national, or World Games. This group determines exact number of athletes, teams, or coaches that the program is allowed to send to the event. This quota is based on program census numbers, competitions offered, etc.
How does Team Arkansas get selected?
An application is sent out once quotas have been confirmed by the Local Organizing Committee (typically 1 year prior to USA Games). Athletes must be active in the sport they are looking to be chosen in. Coaches must be certified and familiar with the sport they are interested in coaching. In addition, everyone who applies must be able to attend team practices, able to adjust to being with athletes and/or coaches they are not traditionally with, be able to travel in multiple forms of transportation including an airplane and abide by any rules set forward by Special Olympics Arkansas. Anyone interested in being selected for USA Games must be regularly involved in Special Olympics Arkansas programming. Athletes, Unified Partners, and Coaches must abide by any rules set forth by Special Olympics Arkansas and uphold all policies and codes of conduct.
2030 Special Olympics USA Games
The next USA Games will be hosted in Cleveland, Ohio!
The Special Olympics USA Games are a national sporting event held every four years, bringing together thousands of athletes from across all 50 states to compete in various Olympic-style team and individual sports.
2026 Special Olympics USA Games
The 2026 Special Olympics USA Games took place in Minnesota from June 20–26. Hosted primarily at the University of Minnesota and the National Sports Center in Blaine, the event united 3,000 athletes, 1,500 coaches, and 75,000 fans across 16 team and individual sports. Team Arkansas Diamonds was made up of a 90 member team made up of 68 athletes and Unified partners, and 22 coaches who will compete in 11 sports including Youth Leadership Experience along with 14 delegation support members. The team brought home 24 gold, 7 silver. 43 bronze, 23 4th, 2 5th, 5 6thand 1 8th place awards!
What determines what sports and how many people attend?
Special Olympics USA Games are hosted by an entity called Local Organizing Committee (LOC). a temporary, event-specific organization formed to plan, manage, and execute a specific Special Olympics event, such as a state, national, or World Games. This group determines exact number of athletes, teams, or coaches that the program is allowed to send to the event. This quota is based on program census numbers, competitions offered, etc.
How does Team Arkansas get selected?
An application is sent out once quotas have been confirmed by the Local Organizing Committee (typically 1 year prior to USA Games). Athletes must be active in the sport they are looking to be chosen in. Coaches must be certified and familiar with the sport they are interested in coaching. In addition, everyone who applies must be able to attend team practices, able to adjust to being with athletes and/or coaches they are not traditionally with, be able to travel in multiple forms of transportation including an airplane and abide by any rules set forward by Special Olympics Arkansas. Anyone interested in being selected for USA Games must be regularly involved in Special Olympics Arkansas programming. Athletes, Unified Partners, and Coaches must abide by any rules set forth by Special Olympics Arkansas and uphold all policies and codes of conduct.
2030 Special Olympics USA Games
The next USA Games will be hosted in Cleveland, Ohio!
Published July 2026
