At 12, Tim was very weak, thin and lacked the confidence to make eye contact with others. He was reluctant to speak at all.

But after getting involved with the Macau Special Olympics (MSO), everything changed.

“He had so much more self-esteem and believed he could do anything,” said MSO’s National Director Hetzer Siu, who watched Tim win gold medals in the 100-meter run and long jump at the Special Olympics world competition a few years after Tim got involved. “He found a platform to show his ability and let the whole world know who he is and learned so much more afterward.”

Nearly three decades later, Tim is married, has a child and works in security at a casino. He is one of many success stories for MSO, the MDRT Foundation’s charity partner at the 2025 MDRT Global Conference.

More sports, more chances

MSO, Macau’s local version of the global organization providing athletic opportunities to people with intellectual disabilities (ID), offers 14 sports, including swimming, badminton, bowling, golf, ice skating, basketball, indoor rowing, dragon boat races and more. The Olympics enables the 1,600 athletes, ages 3 to 16, who use MSO’s services annually to participate in activities of their choosing and work toward participating in competition.

Many families of children with ID lack the resources to support their kids’ participation in sports, Siu says. At the MDRT Global Conference, a sports equipment drive helped collect items like badminton rackets, table tennis paddles and balls, athletic T-shirts, water bottles and many more items for MSO athletes. This continues the MDRT Foundation’s long-standing support of Special Olympics chapters, which have received 19 grants endorsed by MDRT members, totaling $126,000 to programs in the U.S., Canada and Jamaica.

When Siu joined MSO as a volunteer in 1987, only track and field was offered. At the time, he says, many people were reluctant to speak to those with ID, and this population was grouped with folks who were mentally ill and often not encouraged to attend school, enter the community or even live independently.

Society is much more accepting and supportive today, Siu says, but can always advance further.

“If I have the power, I would like to help people who don’t have enough power to say what they want to say,” he said. “How can I protect their rights and let them have a path for their future?”

Beyond athletics

To that end, MSO, whose 400 staff members include social workers, special education teachers, speech therapists, and occupational and physical therapists, is unique in providing programming beyond sports training. These include social welfare initiatives like programs supporting inclusion, engagement and awareness, and vocational training such as job coaching and placement, mentoring and assistive technology support to help athletes gain skills for employment. The community care department provides after-school care, leisure and arts activities, shuttle bus services and more for people with ID and their families.

And the special education department offers a wide range of support to young student athletes that advance their emotional, social and academic capabilities while building relationships between parents and children.

“We believe they can do many things,” said Siu, who noted that while sports are seen as less important in Eastern cultures, athletics can help foster professional success beyond sports. “Everyone is human, and everyone is an individual, even if some behaviors are different.”

Asked if he remembers a noteworthy occurrence of an athlete or their family showing gratitude, Siu paused. Many do say thank you, but that’s not why Siu does what he does. More significant than the gratitude he receives, he says, is the thanks he gives. After volunteering for seven years, he returned to school to become a social worker armed with more professional knowledge to support people with ID. Then he became MSO’s national director eight years later.

“I say thank you for letting me be a volunteer, which gave me the chance to be a social worker and work in this community,” he said. “It’s a social justice to do something like this.”