Above from left: Peter Wheeler, Special Olympics Chief, Strategic Properties; Timothy Shriver, Special Olympics Chairman of the Board; Mayor Hermann Kröll; Janet Froetscher, Chief Executive Officer; Ambassador Hans Peter ManzOn Friday, August 1, 2014, the President of Special Olympics Austria, Hermann Kröll, visited the Special Olympics headquarters in Washington, D.C. to give an update on the next World Winter Games, which will be  hosted by Austria in 2017.

Hermann Kröll served as Mayor of the City of Schladming from 1975 to 2005 and was a Member of the Austrian Parliament from 1996 until 1999. In 1993, Mayor Kröll was responsible for hosting the first Special Olympics World Winter Games outside the United States, which took place in Schladming and Salzburg in 1993. Since then, Special Olympics Austria has grown into one of the strongest Special Olympic Programs in the world.

Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 4.2 million athletes in 220 countries. Special Olympics competitions are held every day, all around the world—including local, national and regional competitions, adding up to more than 80,000 events a year.

For more information visit http://www.specialolympics.org