• Home
• News

19 February 2026  2 min read

Special Olympics GB: 1,700 athletes to take centre stage at National Summer Games

The nationwide celebration of inclusive sport will give around 1,700 children and adults with a learning disability the chance to compete, belong and be seen on a national stage.

Staged for the first time since 2017, the new-look Games will take place across England, Scotland and Wales throughout the summer, including eight single-sport competitions and culminating in a flagship seven-sport event in Birmingham from 26–30 August - set to be the largest gathering of Special Olympics GB athletes in almost a decade.

The basketball-portion of the Games will take place at the National Basketball Performance Centre in Manchester on 7-9 August.

Laura Baxter MBE, Chief Executive of Special Olympics GB, said:

“The National Summer Games are one of the most powerful platforms we have to show what people with intellectual disabilities can achieve when they are given the opportunity to train, compete and belong.

“Across Great Britain, too many people with intellectual disabilities still face isolation and low expectations. These Games challenge that by bringing athletes into the spotlight and onto some of the country’s most iconic sporting stages.

“After nine years without a National Summer Games, the 2026 Games will be a landmark moment for our movement - not just for the 1,700 athletes competing, but for everyone who believes in a more inclusive future for sport and society.”

The 2026 National Summer Games will combine:

• A five-day multi-sport event in Birmingham featuring athletics, swimming, football, boccia, artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics and Motor Activity Training Programme (MATP)
• Eight single-sport National Games Competitions hosted in communities across Great Britain

Find out more - SOGB