Our Special Olympics campaign galvanized influencers to proudly wear and post our “Special” sweatshirt, reclaiming the true meaning of the word “special” for people with intellectual disabilities. The initiative influenced NBA All-Star Damian Lillard to voluntarily wear the sweatshirt on game night. Damian’s in-feed post fueled interest from other influencers, with posts from NFL’s Mack Hollins, Jared Wayne, Dare Ogunbowale, Dalton Risner; former NFL players Drew Brees and Dale Moss; WWE’s Drew McIntyre; ESPN’s Victoria Arlen; NBA’s Tristan Thompson; Chris Nikic, the first Adidas-sponsored athlete with Down syndrome, Olympians Gaby Dabrowski and Alia Atkinson, actress Melissa McCarthy, and more.

The word "special" means better, greater, or otherwise different from what is usual. And in sports, it's often used to describe once-in-a-lifetime athletes or legacy moments. However, people have used "special" as a euphemism for decades (in the United States, in particular), giving it a negative charge as it pertains to people with disabilities. We saw an opportunity to turn "special" into a quality everyone aspires to be called. Special Olympics athletes -- who have intellectual disabilities like down syndrome and autism -- do amazing things every day, all around the globe. They break all kinds of stereotypes, accomplish things they were told they'd never be able to do, and inspire others to become more inclusive. Our goal was to reclaim the meaning of "special" by showing the world how our Special Olympics athletes meet the true definition of the word.

The word "special" means better, greater, or otherwise different from what is usual. And in sports, it's often used to describe once-in-a-lifetime athletes or legacy moments. However, people have used "special" as a euphemism for decades, giving it a negative charge as it pertains to people with disabilities. We saw an opportunity to turn "special" into a quality everyone aspires to be called. Special Olympics athletes -- who have intellectual disabilities like down syndrome and autism -- do amazing things every day, all around the globe. They break all kinds of stereotypes, accomplish things they were told they'd never be able to do, and inspire others to become more inclusive. Our goal was to start a movement, with support and groundswell from influencers and Special Olympics ambassadors, to reclaim the meaning of "special" by showing the world how Special Olympics athletes meet the true definition of the word.

On Giving Tuesday, we surprised two Special Olympics athletes with billboards in NYC, where they were the faces of our "Yeah, I am Special" campaign, aimed at ending stigmas around the word “special” as related to people with intellectual disabilities. We also launched an impactful social film, voiced by sports announcer Stephen A. Smith, showcasing the power of the word “special” in sports. On the shoppable billboards, the Special Olympics athletes debuted limited-edition “Special” sweatshirts that declare, "Special: Exceptionally great. Important. Unique. Special is something to strive for. The ultimate compliment. A word that we can all hope to be called. Not for the things that we cannot do. But for all of the things that we can."

We sent sweatshirts to Special Olympics ambassadors and professional athletes, like NBA All-Star Damian Lillard, to help organically ignite passion on social, and kickstart a movement around the true meaning of “special.”

Our proprietary research showed that 72% of Americans have used or heard the word “special” as an insult or put-down; yet “special” is used in pro sports all the time to describe extraordinary players, teams, and moments. We saw an opportunity to shift the stigma around “special” and reclaim it for what it truly means for Special OIympics athletes who fight stereotypes and overcome odds every day.

For the target audience, while the Special Olympics would like to engage people of all ages to increase their number of volunteers and ambassadors, an objective of this campaign was to engage younger millennials and Gen Z by leveraging the influence of popular professional athletes, like Damian Lillard and Dale Moss. We sent sweatshirts to Special Olympics ambassadors and celebrities, hoping they’d be inspired to wear the sweatshirt and post on social media to help ignite our movement, and they did just that.

We launched on Giving Tuesday - a big donation day for nonprofits. The shoppable billboards, with QR codes leading to the microsite imspecial.org, ran for two weeks in Times Square. The campaign site featured the launch film; links to purchase the limited-edition “Special” sweatshirt; and bios on our campaign stars - Madi “Maddog” Madory, a 28-year-old powerlifting dynamo with down syndrome who can deadlift 1.5 times her bodyweight; and Joshua Olds, a 17-year-old triathlete with autism, who has conquered 17 triathlons.

The launch film was also posted on Special Olympics’ international social channels. We sent sweatshirts to Special Olympics ambassadors and celebrities, like NBA All-Star Damian Lillard, hoping they’d be inspired to wear the sweatshirt and post on social media to help ignite our movement, and they did.

While the sweatshirts were only available in the U.S., we are working on a global expansion aimed at continuing our momentum.

- Within 24 hours, people worldwide wanted to wear “special” on their chest, with requests coming in across all social platforms

- We gained organic support from dozens of celebrities and influencers, including NBA All-Star Damian Lillard, Atlanta Falcons’ Mack Hollins, Olympians Gaby Dabrowski and Alia Atkinson, Texan Houstons’ Jared Wayne and Dare Ogunbowale, and Vikings’ Dalton Risner; former NFL players Drew Brees and Dale Moss; WWE’s Drew McIntyre; ESPN host Victoria Arlen; NBA’s Tristan Thompson; Chris Nikic, the first Adidas-sponsored athlete with Down syndrome; actress Melissa McCarthy, American Author Katherine Schwarzenegger, and more

- Media Coverage Impressions: 354 Million

- $665K Earned Media Equivalency

- Social Media Awareness: 114 Million Impressions in the first 10 days

- NYC Billboards: 8.7 Million Impressions

- Special Olympics Merchandise Sales Quadrupled Year-Over-Year

- First Batch of Limited-Edition Sweatshirts SOLD OUT in One Week