Special Olympics International (SOI) has appointed Maggie Brennan in the new role of Manager of Sport Development as part of the joint Global Development Strategy by BWF and SOI to grow badminton and provide meaningful opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities worldwide.
Maggie Brennan.
Badminton is a fast-developing sport in the Special Olympics world and currently has more than 370,000 players engaged in the game globally.
Maggie’s primary focus will be working with the BWF and the SOI Regions to support the development of badminton as an inclusive sport on a global scale.
Maggie brings a breadth of international sport experience, working for the National Paralympic Committee of Canada for five years prior to joining SOI, and as a member of the International Olympic Committee’s Young Leader programme.
She assisted in the development of virtual programming to support local Special Olympics initiatives during the COVID-19 pandemic and is looking forward to supporting the vision set out by SOI and the BWF across all aspects of badminton.
SOI CEO Mary Davis said: “The Badminton World Federation is a valued partner of Special Olympics in our effort to provide an impactful sport experience for every Special Olympics badminton player as we strive to use sport to create healthier, more inclusive communities throughout the world.
“To ensure we deliver on the key results areas specified in our joint badminton Global Development Strategy, we have invested in building our capacity through the hiring of Maggie Brennan as our new sport development manager.”
Maggie (pictured with microphone) presenting at the IOC Youth Summit.
BWF Secretary General Thomas Lund added: “It is great that we have access to collaborate with a full-time, dedicated development manager to help us promote badminton as an inclusive sport for all through SOI’s network.”
Maggie will observe the upcoming BWF AGM, as well as join the BWF – Continental Confederations Virtual Webinar sessions in June as part of her onboarding. BWF looks forward to working with Maggie in implementing and executing core badminton projects in the coming years.
Find out more: https://development.bwfbadminton.com/inclusivity
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