Athlete: Special Olympics athletes are 8-year-old and
older and have an intellectual disability, a cognitive delay, or a
developmental disability. Athletes who are 6 and 7 years old can train in a
sport but cannot compete.
Unified Partner: Volunteer that is 8-year-old and older who trains and competes alongside an athlete. (Class A)
Coach: Head or Assistant coach creates,
organizes, and runs a comprehensive sport training program that enables
athletes to build sport specific skills. (Class A)
Chaperone/Training Site Volunteer: Volunteer who supports a training
site/team to cover the 1:4 ratio. Chaperones do not help with sports training
but may support a sport team through supervision and administrative support. Chaperones are able to supervise athletes and travel with the team to competitions. (Class A)
General Volunteer: Volunteer who assist only at local training site and has limited contact with athletes and only under the supervision of coaches. Training Site Volunteers do not supervise, chaperone, or travel with the team to any competitions. (Class B)