HISTORY OF THE PARALYMPICS

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The Paralympic Summer Games are the second largest sporting event in the world today, the first largest being the Olympic Games. In a relatively short time, the Paralympic Winter Games has established itself as a major event on the Olympic calendar. The winter event made it's debute in 1976 in Ornskoldsvik, Sweden - but the concept is much older.

It is amazing to think that the Paralympic Games had their humble beginnings less than fifty years ago, in Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Aylesbury, England. The earliest beginnings of the creation of athletic Games for people with disabilities can be traced back to World War II and the efforts of one man, a doctor from England named Ludwig Guttmann. Known as the "Father of Sport for People with Disabilities," Dr. Guttmann was a strong advocate of using sports therapy to enhance the quality of life for people who were injured or wounded during World War II.

Dr. Guttmann organized the 1948 International Wheelchair Games to coincide with the 1948 London Olympics. His dream was of a worldwide sports competition for people with disabilities to be held every four years as "the equivalent of the Olympic Games." Twelve years later, his dream became a reality.

The first Paralympic Games were held in Rome, Italy, in 1960 and involved 400 athletes from 23 countries. Originally only wheelchair athletes were invited to compete. Since that time, the Paralympic Games have grown dramatically. The present day Paralympic Games include six major classifications of athletes: persons with visual impairments, persons with physical disabilities, amputee athletes, people with cerebral palsy, people with spinal cord injuries, and Les Autres - athletes with a physical disability that are not included in the categories mentioned above (e.g., people with Muscular Dystrophy).

The Paralympics are held in two seasons: summer and winter. Athletes with disabilities have been competing in the Winter Games since 1976. Sweden hosted the first Winter Games, which included 12 countries competing in Alpine and Cross-country skiing events. In 1992, the four-year cycle was modified so that the winter and summer Paralympic Games coincide with the Olympics.

Sir Ludwig Guttmann died in 1980, but his vision of sport for athletes with disabilities continues today. Clearly the value of sport in the lives of athletes with disabilities extends far beyond its rehabilitative benefits. Sportsmanship, camaraderie, and an active lifestyle are other important benefits. The athletic talents of competitors with disabilities are becoming recognized worldwide, just as Dr. Guttmann intended. The skill and talent of high-performance athletics and competition are evident in the performance of today s Paralympians from all nations.

SOURCE: Canadian Paralympic Committee: History of the Paralympic Movement

GROWTH OF THE PARALYMPIC GAMES

The Paralympic Summer Games have grown considerably since their inception in 1960, when a total 400 athletes from 23 countries participated. The last Paralympic Summer Games were held in Athens, Greece in 2004. These Games broke many records. Athens hosted 3,806 athletes, the largest number ever and also the most women athletes ever. Representatives of 136 countries took part, more than any other sport event.

The Winter Paralympic Games have a fairly short, but distinguished history. The first Winter Games took place in 1976 in Ornskoldsvik, Sweden. This first international winter competition included 12 countries who competed in events in alpine and cross country skiing. The Games have steadily increased in size and popularity since their inception in 1976. There are now five events including alpine skiing, cross country skiing, biathlon, curling and sledge hockey. The Salt Lake 2002 Paralympic Winter Games included up to 416 athletes and team officials from 36 nations.

In addition to the increased participation over the years, there have been a number of other changes to the Paralympic Games. Various events have been added and removed, and the range of disabilities and classifications included in the Games has also expanded. The following information has been summarized from the International Paralympic Committee website. For more information about each of the Paralympic Winter and Summer Games please visit the site at: www.paralympic.org

SOURCE: Canadian Paralympic Committee: Growth of the Paralympic Games

SUMMARY OF THE PARALYMPIC SUMMER GAMES

1960 — Rome, Italy

With the groundbreaking decision to hold the 1960 Games in the Olympic city of Rome, Sir Ludwig Guttmann s vision of international games that would be the equivalent of the Olympics was first realized. The competitive program included eight sport events for athletes with spinal cord injuries: snooker, fencing (foil or sabre), javelin and precision javelin, shot put, club throwing (throwing a baton), men s basketball and swimming (freestyle, breaststroke and backstroke). Other events held at the Games were: table tennis (singles and doubles), archery, dart archery and the pentathlon (archery, swimming, javelin, shot put and club throwing).

1964 — Tokyo, Japan

A total of 375 athletes (307 men and 68 women) from 21 countries participated in the Tokyo Games. Several new events were introduced, increasing the total number of events held at the Paralympic Games to fifteen. A major addition was wheelchair racing in the form of a 60m race for men and women. Also, the 1964 Games saw the introduction of the first Paralympic Flag and Anthem.

1968 — Tel Aviv, Israel

Canada competed in its first Paralympic Games in 1968. The sports program grew considerably compared with the 1964 program in Tokyo. New events such as lawn bowling, women s basketball and the 100m wheelchair race for men were introduced. Changes were also introduced in the classification systems for athletics, basketball and swimming. Nine events were on the sports program during these Games: athletics (track and field events including discus, shot put, javelin and clubthrow), basketball, dart archery, fencing, lawn bowls, snooker, swimming, table tennis and weightlifting.

1972 — Heidelberg, Germany

Some 1,004 athletes from 41 countries took part in the 1972 Games, which saw the inclusion of different disability groups and exhibition events such as goalball and the 100m sprint for blind and visually impaired athletes.

1976 — Toronto, Canada

The 1976 Games were attended by six countries, with 1,657 athletes competing, 253 of whom were women. For the first time, 261 amputees and 187 visually impaired athletes were included in the program as well as in several new events. With the entry of other disability groups, there were many new events. In wheelchair racing, new distances of 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m were added. Rifle shooting became a medal event, following previous demonstrations at the International Stoke Mandeville Games. Goalball, a demonstration event at the 1972 Paralympics in Heidelberg, was also featured as a medal event. For the first time, television coverage of the Games was broadcast daily to more than 600,000 viewers in Southern Ontario.

1980 — Arnhem, Holland

The Arnhem Games included a total of 1,973 athletes from 42 countries. Of these competitors, 1,055 were wheelchair athletes, 452 were amputee athletes, 341 were visually impaired athletes and 125 were Cerebral Palsy athletes, who participated for the first time in the Games. Sitting volleyball was added to the program.

1984 — New York, USA and Stoke Mandeville, England

More than 1,100 athletes from 41 countries competed in 14 events in England; while athletes in the other three disability groups, visually impaired athletes, athletes with Cerebral Palsy and amputee and Les Autres athletes competed separately in New York. Amputees, both wheelchair and standing, were divided into nine classes, and they competed in athletics, lawn bowls, shooting, swimming, table tennis, volleyball and powerlifting. Cerebral Palsy athletes were divided into eight classes and competed in athletics, archery, shooting, swimming, table tennis, boccia, cycling, dressage, powerlifting and football. There were three classes of visually impaired athletes who competed in athletics, swimming, wrestling and goalball. The six classes of Les Autres athletes competed in athletics, archery, shooting, swimming, table tennis, volleyball, powerlifting and basketball.

1988 — Seoul, South Korea

For the first time, the Paralympics were held following the Olympic Games. Paralympians gained access to all the major Olympic facilities and competed in the same venues. There were 16 events on the program: archery, athletics, basketball, boccia, cycling, fencing, football, goalball, judo, lawn bowls, powerlifting, shooting, snooker, swimming, table tennis and volleyball. Wheelchair tennis was introduced as a demonstration event. The 1988 Games showed a marked rise in athletic performance, with many multiple gold medal winners in various sports and events.

1992 — Barcelona, Spain

At the IX Paralympic Summer Games, athletes from different disability categories participated in the same events, thus elevating competitive standards and promoting greater interest amongst spectators. In over 12 days of competition in 15 sports, more than 1.5 million spectators attended various events and millions more watched the competitions daily on television. A total of 3,020 athletes from 82 countries took part in the Barcelona Games. Some 487 events were held, with 279 world records set. Wheelchair tennis, which was a demonstration event at Seoul 1988, became an official medal event.

1996 — Atlanta, USA

The Atlanta Games were attended by 3,195 athletes (2,415 male and 780 female) from 103 countries. There were 20 sports and 508 events at the Games. Of these, 17 were full medal sports and three were demonstration events racquetball, sailing and wheelchair rugby. For the first time, 56 mentally impaired athletes took part in athletics and swimming events.

2000 — Sydney, Australia

A record number of 122 countries participated at the Sydney Paralympics, which were the largest Paralympic Summer Games of all time, including a total of 3,843 athletes from 123 countries. Sydney 2000 marked the first-time participation of female athletes in powerlifting.

2004 — Athens, Greece

The Athens 2004 Paralympic Summer Games began on September 17th, 2004 in Greece. This marked the first time that the Olympics and Paralympics were organized by the same committee.

2008 — Beijing, China

The 2008 Beijing Paralympic Summer Games were held September 6-17, 2008. They were opened 13 days after the closure of the 29th Olympic Summer Games, and the Paralympic Games utilized the same venues as the 2008 Olympic Games. Most venues for the Paralympiad were in the range of the Olympic Green and the university area, while the Olympic Village was converted to also serve as the Paralympic Village.

SOURCE: (Link will open as a PDF) Canadian Paralympic Committee: History of the Paralympic Games