For the first time ever, the Special Olympics World Games were held outside of the United States -- in Dublin, Ireland, to be exact -- and stars such as U2, Colin Farrell and Muhammad Ali gathered Saturday to mark the event, PEOPLE reports.
Also showing up: Pierce Brosnan, former South African President Nelson Mandela, Bon Jovi, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Heather Locklear and hubby Richie Sambora, Dylan McDermott and wife Shiva, and Caroline Kennedy -- whose family has long been associated with the games.
Caroline's aunt, Eunice Shriver, founded the Special Olympics, and Eunice's son Tim is now the foundation's CEO.
Asked why he traveled from Los Angeles to Dublin just for the event, composer Quincy Jones, 70, said, "I've known the Kennedys 50 years, when they were little kids, when John (F. Kennedy Jr.) was a little kid." He also praised the family's "dedication and spirit. ... They just never give up. I love that. They've been doing it a long time."
Schwarzenegger, 55, who is related to the Kennedys by marriage (to Maria Shriver), told PEOPLE that he came to the Special Olympics through "a total coincidence" in 1979. "I was asked to run a program to see ... what impact weight resistance would have on people with disabilities."
Meanwhile, Dublin native Farrell, 27, modeled and paid for the uniforms worn by the thousands of volunteers at this year's Olympics. When asked why he chose this over anything else he could be doing this weekend, he replied: "It's the most important."
During the ceremony, there wasn't a dry eye in the house when Bono belted out "Pride (In the Name of Love)" and then led out Mandela, while thousands of Special Olympians watched from inside Dublin's 85,000-seat Croke Stadium.
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