Volunteering for the Special Olympics World Games
Liu Ming did not know what to expect when he volunteered for the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai, back in October 2007. Now he thinks it was the most amazing experience of his life. “It's fantastic to work as a volunteer!” he says.
The Special Olympics World Games give children and adults with intellectual disabilities a chance to show their skills to the world. They include many events similar to those in the Olympics, such as basketball, football and swimming.
Over 40,000 people gave up their spare time for the 2007 Special Olympics World Games. It was necessary for these volunteers to receive training before doing the tasks. Then they provided support for the athletes and helped make the event a great success.
“I was the swimming coach for a young boy from North China called Li Hai,” says Liu Ming. “He was born with intellectual disabilities. It was very brave of him to join the competition. To Li Hai, the most important thing is not to win a gold or a silver, but to take part. Li Hai tried his best and finished fourth. He feels more confident now because of the Special Olympics World Games.”
The Special Olympics World Games also bring people together. Athletes and volunteers from different backgrounds feel like part of one big family. “It's great for us to work closely with these special athletes. You get to help them achieve their dreams,” says Liu Ming.
课外阅读材料1
Could you be a Helpline Volunteer?
Submitted by Danielle Walker on Mon, 2019-02-25 11:34
Could you spare a few hours a week to provide emotional (感情的) support and information to people affected (感染) by MS? If so, our MS Helpline team would like to hear from you.
Our Helpline Volunteers operate from home, offering telephone-based emotional support and information for people affected by MS throughout the UK.
Our MS Helpline
The MS Helpline is open from Monday to Friday 9 am to 7 pm. All of our Helpline Volunteers carry out their MS Helpline volunteering from home and give emotional support and information to people affected by MS by telephone.
We are looking for volunteers that can commit to a 3 or 4 hour telephone shift (轮班) a week.
Our selection process
If you are shortlisted (入围), we'll have an informal chat between 8-16th April over the telephone — this will take about an hour and will include a short role play. Successful candidates will then need to attend the training courses in London on 15th and 16th May.
Following the training, successful candidates will need to attend telephone/online training for eight weeks every Wednesday during the daytime (about 1.5 hours per week).
Find out more and apply
To find out more about volunteering with our MS Helpline, contact Emma Chudley at emma.chudley@mssociety.org.uk or on 020 8438 0837.
Deadline for applications — 1 April at 9 am.
· Read and answer: What's the report about?
课外阅读材料2
Hello. My name is Matthew Williams, and I am a champion (冠军). I have won medals in three different sports and national games in Canada, competed at the international level in basketball and was proud to represent Canada on the world stage.
I was born with an intellectual disability. The older I got, the more I felt it was harder to keep up with everyone else, and I was angry and frustrated (沮丧的). Before I joined Special Olympics, I was nervous because I was young, shy, not confident and didn't have many friends. When I got there, though, everyone was very encouraging, supportive, and let me be myself without being judged.
· Read and answer: What was he like before joining Special Olympics? And what's he like now?