For some students with Down syndrome, the development and learning of skills and concepts may take longer than for others. The needs of each child are different and progress can be slow. But it is very important that children with Down syndrome are physically educated, this process in this case may be slower, but it is very useful (Jobling,1994).
In relation to the education and physical awareness mentioned above, it is important to promote sport in these children early, so that the development of muscle tone is higher than normal in these children (which is normally lower).
To know if they can practice contact sports, gymnastics or others that may pose a risk, the doctor must be the one to approve it. This is because children with down syndrome are more probably to have atlanto-axial* instability.
*risk of developing spinal cord compression.
Sport in children with Down syndrome provides benefits in different areas of life (Siglo Cero, Down Ciclopedia):
Personal: In this personal area, some of the benefits (not counting the aforementioned muscle tone increase) are spatial orientation, improved body posture, static balance, coordination ...
Oriented towards integration and standardization (Mentz, 1986): In this area, the most remarkable thing would be the socialization with people with the same disability, with another or with disabilities, together with the fact that sport offers better opportunities to feel success than intellectual work and that according to this author, sport is the field of human interaction with fewer conflicts and psychological barriers ...
Others: Other aspects that are beneficial in practicing sports in children with Down syndrome may be, on the one hand, the fact that it helps to abandon the egocentric attitude (they have to anticipate the actions of the adversary), in addition it can also be this fact of beneficial anticipation to enhance skills such as personal autonomy and intellectual functioning. On the other hand, related to the rules of games, learning these and becoming familiar with them enhance the development of social sensitivity and self-confidence.
Therefore, answering the question that gives title to this post, not only the down syndrome and sport are compatible, much more than that, sport is beneficial for people who have this syndrome. So whenever possible, it would be beneficial for children with Down syndrome to practice sports, as it brings them not only physical benefits, but also personal and social ones.
With the intention of complementing this post, I have been looking for information on the participation of people with down syndrome in sports competitions. It should be noted that people with this syndrome are excluded from the Paralympic Games (and it is intended that they integrate them). Marco Borzacchini, the president of the Italian Sports Federation for People with Intellectual Disabilities, in 2016 created an exclusive Olympics for people with Down Syndrome, these are called “The Trisome Games”. In these games they compete in sports such as: rhythmic gymnastics, artistic gymnastics, table tennis, futsal, judo... Trisome Games allow people with down syndrome to participate and compete in the sport in which they excel at the world level, and win medals as in Paralympic Games.
Information taken from:
Jobling, A. (1994) Physical education for the person with Down syndrome: More than playing games?. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 2(1), 31-35. doi:10.3104/reviews.27
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