Sport as a Force for Inclusion: Virtus Celebrating International Day of Sport for Development and Peace

On 6 April, Virtus celebrates the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP), a global celebration of the power of sport to promote social change, inclusion, and peace. Sport has a unique ability to unite people beyond borders, cultures, and backgrounds. It fosters teamwork, resilience, and respect.

Virtus believes sports can change lives—especially for people with an intellectual impairment and continues to champion equal opportunities, fair competition, and greater accessibility to sports worldwide. Virtus uses sports as a tool for empowerment, breaking down barriers, challenging stereotypes and unfair ideas towards people with an intellectual impairment, and creating more opportunities for people with an intellectual impairment. 

This year’s theme, ‘Levelling the Playing Field’, aligns perfectly with Virtus’ mission. As the global organisation for elite sports for athletes with intellectual impairments, Virtus is committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of ability, age, gender, race, or background, has the opportunity to compete at the highest level. By breaking down barriers and fostering equal opportunities, we empower athletes with intellectual impairments to reach their full potential. We work consistently to expand access to competitive sports, develop global awareness of the talents and achievements of athletes with intellectual impairments, and collaborate with international partners to advocate for a more inclusive sporting world. In addition, maintaining integrity, clean sport and fair play is also crucial at Virtus. We uphold strict anti-doping regulations across all our events, ensuring that every competition is fair and that all athletes compete without the use of banned substances. 

Virtus creates opportunities for people to shine on the world stage. From the Virtus Global Games to the Virtus World Championships and Regional Games, we provide athletes with an intellectual impairment and autism a platform to thrive and inspire future generations.

On this special day, we invite everyone—athletes, coaches, organisations, and supporters—to join us in celebrating the power of sport for development and peace. Share a story of how sport has positively impacted you or someone you know, organise or participate in an inclusive sporting event, use #IDSDP, #VirtusSport, and #SportForPeace to spread awareness on social media, and advocate for greater inclusion in sport within your community.

At Virtus, we believe that sport has no boundaries, only possibilities. Let’s use this day to reaffirm our commitment to an inclusive and fair sporting world where every athlete has the opportunity to shine.