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Leading Italian eyewear specialist Safilo Group has announced its continued commitment to supporting the Special Olympics, the international sports competition for people with disabilities.

Safilo is sponsoring the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens from 25 June to 4 July, when 7,000 Special Olympics athletes from more than 170 countries will compete in 22 Olympic sports.

Safilo's involvement with the Special Olympics started in 2003 as a global supplier of the Special Olympics-Lions Clubs International Opening Eyes vision care programme. Opening Eyes, part of the Special Olympics' award-winning Healthy Athletes public health initiative, provides vision care for people with disabilities.

Many athletes benefit from vision screenings and receive prescription glasses to correct their vision impairments and sunglasses to protect their eyes. The Opening Eyes programme also provides sports protective eyewear for athletes who train and compete in contact sports.

Opening Eyes was founded by the American Optometric Association's Sports Vision Section and formally incorporated into the Special Olympics Healthy Athletes programme in 1997. A grant from the Lions Clubs International Foundation, the largest service club in the world, formalised a global partnership and enabled the Opening Eyes programme to expand internationally.

Safilo renewed its support for the Special Olympics by donating more than 80,000 spectacles and sunglasses between 2010 and 2011 for Special Olympics athletes. In addition, Safilo staff often take part in the events as volunteers, donating their time and expertise for the benefit of Special Olympics athletes and those with disabilities.