Timothy Shriver

Timothy Shriver grew up in a family where public service and the fight for justice were the family business. The son of Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver, he carved his own path first as an educator and film producer focused on social issues. In 1996, he took the helm of the organization his mother started, steering it with a visionary's ambition. Under his leadership, the Special Olympics exploded in scale and scope, reaching millions of athletes in nearly every country. Shriver understood that the games were merely the catalyst; his real work was changing attitudes, challenging the world to see intellectual disability through a lens of ability and giftedness. He launched initiatives like the Campaign for Inclusion and founded UNITE, an effort to mend America's political and cultural divides. For Shriver, the playing field is a proving ground for a simple, powerful idea: that every person has a contribution to make.