With the announcement from United States' First Lady Michelle Obama, the 2015 Special Olympics World Games were officially opened at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum here.
"You're uniting us in a way that nothing else can. My husband and I are so incredibly proud of you," the First Lady said to athletes and announced the opening of the Games on Saturday, reported Xinhua news agency.
Since the 1984 Summer Olympics, the Special Olympics World Games are the largest international sports event Los Angeles has ever held. In this year's Special Olympics, there are 6,500 athletes from 165 countries and regions, competing in 25 different games.
Special Olympics is an event for people with intellectual disabilities and it was created following the ideal of Olympics. It is held every two years, alternated between summer and winter.