South Korea
The Special Olympics World Games are an international sporting competition for athletes with intellectual disabilities, organized by Special Olympics. Special Olympics World Games take place every two years and alternate between Summer and Winter Games, a schedule similar to the Olympics and Paralympics. The first International Special Olympics Winter Games were held in February 1977 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, USA. The first International Special Olympics Summer Games were held in Chicago, Illinois, USA, in 1968. The most recent Special Olympics World Summer Games — held June 25-July 4, 2011 in Athens, Greece — involved more than 6,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities from 170 countries. The next Special Olympics global event will be the World Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea from Jan. 29-Feb. 5, 2013.