This weekend, nearly 3,000 athletes and 1,500 coaches from all 50 states will arrive in Minneapolis for the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games. Streaming on ESPN+, the USA Games will showcase elite athletic and performing talent, while celebrating the inclusion, camaraderie and sportsmanship at the heart of the Special Olympics movement.
Here are five things to know about the USA Games:
1. Inclusion Is at the Core
The USA Games create space for athletes of all abilities to compete at a high level. That’s evident in Wyatt Spalding’s journey — born prematurely and living with cerebral palsy, Spalding found his athletic path competing in Special Olympics basketball and tennis at the 2018 and 2022 USA Games.
This year, he takes on a new role: co-hosting the Opening Ceremony alongside ESPN’s Jen Lada and Kevin Connors.
“If I couldn’t be a professional athlete, I wanted to be a professional talking about sports,” said Spalding. “I’m excited to bring my unique perspective to ESPN’s broadcast and show what happens when people with intellectual disabilities are given equal opportunities in professional spaces, like journalism.”
2. Competition Is Elite
The USA Games are the culmination of years of hard work, training and dedication. To advance to the USA Games, athletes must have competed in local and Program-level competitions. Many athletes train in their sport year-round and for many years prior to competing on the national stage.
At Special Olympics competitions, athletes are given an equal chance to go for the gold through “divisioning,” where athletes and teams are grouped based on sport ability-level, age and gender.
3. Star-Studded Opening Ceremony
This year’s Opening Ceremony on June 20 at 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+/Disney) features Grammy nominee Demi Lovato and Grammy and Oscar winner Jon Batiste.
The Opening Tease will be voiced by Toy Story 5 star and two-time Oscar nominee Joan Cusack, while event coverage pairs ESPN personalities with former Olympians Dan O’Brien (Athletics), Cheryl Haworth (Powerlifting) and Rowdy Gaines (Swimming).
4. Unified Sports Build Connection
ESPN is the Global Presenting Sponsor of Special Olympics Unified Sports, which joins people with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team. It was inspired by a simple principle: training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding. With support from ESPN and others, Special Olympics has grown this innovative, inclusive program to more than 1.8M participants, up 111% since its inception.
The Unified Flag Football gold medal game will be hosted by former NFL running back Maurice Jones-Drew (NFL Network, June 25, 2 p.m. ET).
5. Record Production Effort
ESPN’s production team is pulling out all the stops, making these USA Games the most expansive Special Olympics production to date, with nearly 50 hours of coverage across ABC, ESPN+, Disney+ and NFL Network, including:
- Six mobile units
- 260 crew members on-site and at ESPN’s headquarters
- Nearly 50 cameras capturing the action.
