Championing Joy: Special Olympics’ Akiko and Chips Guevara on creating safe spaces for PWIDs

When the couple asked these parents why they did not disclose their children’s needs, it opened up a vulnerable conversation. “They would always express fear that we would reject them. We wanted to do something about it by starting a special needs program.” At the time, Akiko Guevara was pregnant with their third child, a girl named Sachiko. What they did not know was that Sachiko would be born with Down Syndrome. “It changed our world,” Chips Guevara shared. “As we got to know Sachiko, we realised what a joy she is. Her name means ‘child of joy,’ and we gave this to her long before she was born.” The birth of their daughter made their work in advocating for PWIDs more important than ever before.

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Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the sister of John F Kennedy, founded Special Olympics International. The Kennedys had a sister born with special needs, but Shriver believed PWIDs needed an opportunity to showcase their unique talents. Akiko Thomson-Guevara and Chips Guevara became involved with the organisation by joining the Special Olympics Pilipinas board, one of the 35 countries Special Olympics Asia Pacific supports. Chips Guevara also serves on the Special Olympics Asia Pacific Advisory Council.

“Like music, sports is a universal language–that’s what makes it so accessible and powerful,” enthused Akiko Thomson-Guevara. “It has the power to bring people from opposite ends together.” One of the Special Olympics activities that does this is Unified Sports, where PWIDs play sports together with neurotypical people are paired with a PWID. “At the Special Olympics, we believe that if you can play sports together, you can live together, side by side,” she added.

More than anything else, the Special Olympics encourages marginalised athletes to express themselves and explore their interests in a safe, encouraging environment. “These are not the kids who often get selected on teams, they often get bullied,” said Akiko Thomson-Guevara. “But when you give them these opportunities, they gain confidence and feel accepted.”

Aside from empowering PWIDs through sports, Special Olympics Pilipinas partners with Decathlon, which offers PWIDs employment opportunities. The couple also shared a story of Alex, a board member who started as a bocce player. His excellence at the sport led him to be an assistant coach, and then a coach. In November, he will travel to New Delhi as part of the coaching staff to participate in the Special Olympics Asia Pacific Bocce and Bowling Competition. “When you give them growth opportunities, you see they can do it–and even surpass expectations.”

Compassion and curiosity are at the heart of Chips and Akiko Guevara’s work with Special Olympics Pilipinas. After decades of pushing the boundaries of excellence in sports, they advocate for sports as a tool for social change. Instead of focusing on the end goal of scoring points or winning medals, their work with the Special Olympics is a reminder to find joy and fulfilment through sports.

Maintaining a positive outlook is what gets the Special Olympics Pilipinas team through all kinds of challenges, from limits in their budget to limits in people’s understanding of PWIDs. “PWIDs are important because they teach us compassion, which is important,” shared Chips Guevara. “When we play sports together, we don’t see skin colour, gender, or religion; we see them as people to have fun with.”

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