POLOKWANE – The Old Peter Mokaba Stadium will be a hive of activity when it hosts the 2022 Special Olympics South Africa Summer Games from November 17-19.

The event will see over 700 athletes from nine provinces battling for top honors.

The games will be preceded by a law enforcement torch run which will see the special olympics ‘Flame of Hope’ travel to four districts in Limpopo before it finally enters the Peter Mokaba Stadium as part of the opening ceremony.

As the official guardians of the flame, the special olympics torch will be escorted on its journey to the opening ceremony by the South African Police Service, the Limpopo Municipal Police Department and other local law enforcement agencies.

During the three day event, athletes will compete in athletics, aquatics, basketball, bocce, football, futsal, netball, table tennis and ten-pin bowling.

Sports competition will be officiated by representatives from the South African Football Federation, Athletics South Africa, the Table Tennis Association of South Africa, Swimming South Africa, Ten Pin Bowling South Africa, the NBA and Netball South Africa.

Athletes also participate in golf and equestrian events which were hosted previously in Gauteng.

Alongside the National Games, a Special Olympics medical screening in seven disciplines will be conducted for our athletes by health professionals from across Limpopo. The screening is being supported by the Department of Health in Limpopo, the Galisano Foundation and Lions Club International.

Three days of fierce competition will see the advancement of the Special Olympics South Africa National Team that will represent South Africa at the 2023 Special Olympics World Games in Berlin, Germany.

The National Team will participate against over 7 000 athletes from 180 countries in Berlin and will be hoping to beat the medal count from the previous Special Olympics Summer Games in the UAE where the team returned with 35 Gold, 15 Silver and 12 Bronze medals.