Athlete Leadership is an exciting professional development opportunity that empowers athletes to develop leadership skills and utilize their voices and abilities to undertake meaningful leadership roles, influence change in the Special Olympics movement and create inclusive communities around the world.

Special Olympics Saskatchewan currently offers three pillars; Athletes on Committees & Input Councils, Athlete Speaker Training, and Social Media & Media Training. The weekend-long training is meant to provide our athletes with the opportunity to build the skills necessary to be advocates for themselves and for Special Olympics in their communities. Each athlete attends the training weekend with a mentor who will commit to helping them for the duration of the weekend and for a period of time thereafter.

Athletes on Committees & Input Councils

This pillar includes training on what it takes to sit on a committee, including various roles and importance of confidentiality. This pillar prepares athletes who are interested in being on an athlete input council.

Athlete Speaker Training:

This pillar includes initial training for athletes who want speaking experience and would like to learn speaking skills, speech writing and delivery. During the weekend, athletes will write their own speech with the help of their mentor, as well as deliver the speech they wrote in front of their peers.

Governance/Social Media/Media Training:

This pillar includes an overview of how Special Olympics boards, committees, and input councils operate. With this training, we hope that athletes will be encouraged and invited to participate on committees that make decisions affecting them and their peers. This pillar also includes social media/media training, which involves do's and don'ts and best practices.

Interested in becoming an athlete leader?

We do not have any upcoming Athlete Leadership Training weekends scheduled at this time. If you are interested in receiving information about future Athlete Leadership opportunities or want to plan Athlete Leadership Training weekend in your community, please contact Haley McGrath at 306-780-9401 or hmcgrath@specialolympics.sk.ca.

Interested in having an Athlete Speaker at your next event?

Special Olympics Athletes have incredible experiences and stories to tell. If you are looking for someone inspiring, honest, and uplifting to speak at your corporate, volunteer, or community event, consider a Special Olympics Athlete. Contact Haley McGrath at 306-780-9401 or hmcgrath@specialolympics.sk.ca to learn more.