Protected: Preparing and Responding to COVID-19

A course designed by Special Olympics North America to cover the basic information about the coronavirus (COVID-19) including: What is the coronavirus, what are the symptoms, how does it spread, and how you can protect yourself. This takes less than 30 minutes to complete and was created with the guidance of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization.

Access this course now! 

Easy-to-read COVID-19 Booklet: Written by and for people with developmental disabilities. Created by the Self Advocacy Resource and Technical Assistance Center (SARTAC). Also, available in Spanish.

• Staying Fit at Home: A simple week–long calendar that athletes can follow to stay fit.  This week–long calendar can be repeated as needed.   
• Fit 5 Guide: A guide based on the three simple goals of exercising 5 days per week, eating 5 total fruits and vegetables per day and drinking 5 water bottles of water. 
• Fit 5 Fitness Cards & Videos: These Fitness Cards & Videos offer exercises to challenge all abilities. The Fitness Cards exercises can be done at practice, at the gym, or even at home. 
• SOCO Fit 5 Facebook group for athletes and community members who are participating or interested in participating in the Fit 5 Challenge. This group is meant to be a resource with tips and tools to allow you to be successful during the Fit 5 Challenge. Feel free to post any questions you have relevant to the challenge and updates on your progress during the challenge. If you join make sure to introduce yourself (i.e. their name, program/state, sports they play, how they are staying healthy etc.)! 
• Fitness & Nutrition Tracker: Challenge your athletes to set daily goals of staying active and making healthy choices. A six-week digital tracker can be found here.
• School of Strength (NEW):  School of Strength is an interactive online platform that encourages athletes to participate in a fun and engaging training program that they can do in the comfort of their own homes.  Developed in partnership with WWE superstar Becky Lynch, this series of videos, a fitness tracker, a coach’s playbook and a caregiver toolkit all contribute to helping athletes focus on nutrition and fitness and getting the most out of their workouts.
• Free Virtual Fitness & Health Classes: This is a list of free live streaming or pre-recorded fitness and health classes that are being offered while the public is being asked to social distance.

• How to Handwash: A step by step visual guide on how to properly wash your hands created by the World Health Organization.  
• Proper Handwashing Techniques: A video lead by a Special Olympics Health Messenger teaching you how to properly wash your hands. 
• Stop the Spread of Germs: A visual showing how you can help stop germs from spreading created by the CDC.  

This can be a confusing and stressful time. Here are ways to help the anxiety and stress you may be feeling.

• Tips to Help with Stress: Special Olympics has developed a few tips to help manage emotions in stressful times. Take a second to try a few out! 
• Yoga Guide (PDF): A list of yoga poses that you can try at home.  

• Family Flash Cards: Fun and engaging flashcards featuring each of the individual activities and at home equipment modifications for families to use at home to run Young Athletes.
• Young Athletes At Home: Guide for families and caregivers on how to run Young Athletes activities at home.
• Young Athletes Videos: Videos demonstrating the individual Young Athletes activities.
• Healthy Play at Home: Poster for families to track the various healthy behaviors they do at home.

Coronavirus update from Special Olympics NC (March 11)

In light of our recent decision to suspend all sport training and competition activities and other activation involving our athletes (read SONC’s full memo here) and Governor Roy Cooper’s announcement of NC being in a state of emergency, we are asking all those who plan to hold meetings and other approved activities do so with discretion.   If there is a case of coronavirus (COVID-19) in your county and you have the option to hold a meeting virtually, please go ahead and do so. The health and safety of our athletes, volunteers, coaches and the entire Special Olympics community remains as a top priority.

We will be offering our GoToMeeting to anyone who would like to hold a virtual meeting but doesn’t have access to a virtual meeting platform. If you would like more information on how to access our GoToMeeting, please reach out to your Community Resources Director.  

In accordance with Special Olympics International, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and NC Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS) recommendations and in order to protect all Special Olympics attendees, we are asking that individuals not attend meetings and other approved activities if they:

• Are sick.
• Have traveled out of the country or to a state in a high-risk area in the past 14 days. (find a list of countries and states).
• Have been in contact with someone who has traveled out of the country or to a state in a high-risk area in the past 14 days and that person is sick.

We also ask individuals attending meetings and other approved activities:

• To refrain from hugging, shaking hands, and giving high fives. Try waving or a head nod to greet someone.

The CDC and the state of North Carolina have updated guidance asking older adults (60 and older) and people with severe medical conditions including heart, lung or kidney disease to “stay home as much as possible.” It is advised that people in those categories avoid crowds and travel.  Please keep in mind that while you may not be at high risk of developing a severe illness from coronavirus (COVID-19), you still have the potential to put others at risk.

Remember, you can help prevent the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and other viruses by following these simple tips: 

For the most accurate and up-to-date information on the coronavirus (COVID-19) in NC, please visit the NC DHHS website.