Thirty years ago today, Eunice Kennedy Shriver helped stage the first Special Olympics for approximately 1,000 athletes with mental disabilities at Soldier Field in Chicago. From this original competition, which was one of the few genuinely positive moments in an otherwise bitter summer remembered for war, riots, bloodshed, and the assassination of Shriver's brother, Robert Kennedy, has sprung an international movement, with Special Olympics programs in 143 countries and 16,000 sports events annually