Press Room

ACE and Special Olympics International Extend Partnership to Advance Inclusive Fitness Education

Posted: Jan 29, 2026 in ACE Press Releases

San Diego, Calif., January 29, 2026 – The American Council on Exercise (ACE) and Special Olympics International have announced a two-year extension of their partnership to further promote inclusion and accessibility in fitness. The continued collaboration focuses on promoting educational materials that prepare exercise professionals with education and tools to support the design and delivery of safe, effective physical activity programs for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID). 

“ACE is committed to empowering exercise professionals with the education and tools they need to ensure that all people—including individuals with intellectual disabilities—have the opportunity to lead full, healthy lives with ready access to meaningful physical-activity options,” said ACE Chief Executive Officer Cedric X. Bryant, PhD, FACSM. “We are honored to continue our partnership with Special Olympics and look forward to further expanding these essential resources to equip health and fitness professionals around the world.” 

ACE and Special Olympics previously partnered on the “Special Olympics Inclusive Fitness Training,” a course to promote inclusion within the fitness industry. Nearly 23,500 individuals worldwide have registered for the course to date. One course participant noted that the course provided, “Solid learning material to help me learn as a trainer working with persons with ID. Excellent info on communicating, presenting info and motivating. Thank you for offering this for free, it was very helpful for me to be more inclusive.” 

Melissa Otterbein, MPH, Director of Fitness & Healthy Lifestyles at Special Olympics International, added, “We’re thrilled to continue and grow our collaboration with ACE to develop innovative programs that meet the needs of people with ID and build more inclusive, supportive communities.”   

ACE and Special Olympics have also partnered to create the Community Physical Activity Leader (CPAL) course, in collaboration with Amy Bantham, CEO of Move To Live®More. The CPAL course is a free, accessible resource that trains individuals with and without ID to lead inclusive physical activity programs in their communities. 

Approximately 1-3% of the global population (about 200 million people) has an intellectual disability (Patel, 2020). People with ID often lead more sedentary lives and are less physically active compared to the general population. Individuals with ID may be at higher risk for developing metabolic syndrome, overweight and obesity, and osteoporosis. 

  

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About the American Council on Exercise (ACE)

Since 1985, the American Council on Exercise (ACE) has been the leading non-profit education and certification provider for health coaches and exercise professionals in the United States and around the world.  

With more than 90,000 highly respected certified health coaches and exercise professionals, ACE Certified Professionals are on the ground daily helping people move, stay active, and make lasting lifestyle behavior changes to build healthier communities.  

Headquartered in San Diego, ACE collaborates with public health partners to educate people of all backgrounds about the importance of physical activity and other healthy lifestyle behaviors; advocates for public policies to increase physical activity opportunities; and supports scientific research that investigates the efficacy of behavior-change interventions and the effectiveness of exercise practices and trends. Learn more at acefitness.org. 

  

About Special Olympics International

Founded in 1968, Special Olympics is a global sports movement to end discrimination against people with intellectual disabilities. We foster acceptance of all people through the power of sport and programming in education, health, and leadership. With more than 4.6 million athletes and Unified Sports® partners and over one million coaches and volunteers in more than 200 countries and territories, Special Olympics offers over 30 Olympic-type sports and delivers more than 60,000 events and competitions each year. Engage with us on: X, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Learn more at SpecialOlympics.org.