The purpose of the study was to analyze the features of the international sports movement of people with intellectual disabilities at the present stage – in the period since 2003 to 2019. The following tasks were realized: to characterize the main historical events in the development of the international sports movement of the Special Olympics in the third period (since 2003); to establish the dynamics of quantitative indicators of the development of the international sports movement of the Special Olympics at the present stage; to identify modern trends in the international sports movement of the Special Olympics. Materials and methods. Such methods were used in the study: theoretical level: analogy, analysis and synthesis, historical methods (comparative-historical and retrospective); sociological research methods: analysis of documentary materials; methods of mathematical statistics. Results and discussion. The analysis takes into account the trends of humanization, democratization and integration of global society, which became the basis for the powerful development of adaptive sports. Quantitative indicators of the Special Olympiad program were used to analyze this period: the total number of athletes (increased more than by 2 times), the number of coaches (increased by 2.2 times), the number of competitions increased by 3.5 times), the number of partners (increased by 2.2 times), as well as the content and characteristics of major events (including non-sporting), which is an integral part of the international movement of Special Olympics. As a result of our study the trends of development of the international sports movement for persons with deviations of mental development are specified. Compared to previous literature data, which characterized the phenomenon during a long historical period (since its foundation in 1968 to 2012), the following trends were additionally highlighted for the first time: active cooperation with sponsors (expansion of partners), which ensures stable further development; introduction of the #InclusionRevolution campaign; launching global non-sporting events to promote the Special Olympics movement, breaking stereotypes of negative attitudes towards people with intellectual disabilities (forums, summits, congresses). Conclusion. Important events of the third period of the International Sports Movement of Special Olympiads are characterized. Stable positive dynamics of indicators of the number of competitions, the number of coaches, the number of athletes, the number of athletes and partners was revealed, which testifies to the effective development of the Special Olympics movement. Most of the trends in the development of the International Sports Movement of Special Olympics at the present stage, described in previous studies, have been confirmed
Keywords: persons with intellectual disabilities, international sports movement, modern stage, trends
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