The Paralympics Games
Spirit in Motion
Founder of the Paralympics
The idea for the Paralympics Games were developed from Sir Ludwig Guttman's work. He believed that sport was good for both morale and rehabilitation. In 1948 he organised a competition in Stoke Mandeville (UK) for Second World War veterans with spinal injuries. This competition's success meant that by 1960 Olympic-style Games with international participation had evolved.
Although there have always been close ties between the Olympics and Paralympics, in 2001, an agreement between IOC and International Paralympics Committee (IPC) ensured that from 2012 onwards, the city chosen to host the Olympic Games would be obliged to host the Paralympics.
The IPC has established ten disability categories, including physical, visual, and intellectual impairment, which apply to the Summer and Winter Paralympics. Athletes with one of these disabilities can compete in the Paralympics though not every sport can allow for every disability category.
Paralympic Flag
| The Paralympic flag contains three colours, red, blue, and green, each in the shape of an Agito (Latin for "I move"), the name given to an asymmetrical crescent specially designed for the Paralympic movement. |  |
Locations
The summer and winter Paralympic Games have been held at the following locations:
| Year | Summer Games | Winter Games |
| 1960 | Rome, Italy | |
| 1964 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| 1968 | Tel Aviv, Israel | |
| 1972 | Heidelberg, West Germany | |
| 1976 | Toronto, Canada | Örnsköldsvik, Sweden |
| 1980 | Arnhem, Netherlands | Grilo, Norway |
| 1984 | Stoke Mandeville (UK)& New York (USA) | Innsbruck, Austria |
| 1988 | Seoul, South Korea | Innsbruck, Austria |
| 1992 | Barcelona & Madrid, Spain | Tignes & Albertville, France |
| 1994 | Lillehammer, Norway | |
| 1996 | Atlanta, USA | |
| 1998 | Nagano, Japan | |
| 2000 | Sydney, Australia | |
| 2002 | Salt Lake City, USA | |
| 2004 | Athens, Greece | |
| 2006 | Turin, Italy | |
| 2008 | Beijing, China | |
| 2010 | Vancouver, Canada | |
| 2012 | London, UK | |
| 2014 | Sochi, Russia | |
| 2016 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | |
| 2018 | Pyeongchang, South Korea | |
| 2020 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| 2022 | Beijing | |
| 2024 | Paris | |
| 2026 | ||
| 2028 | Los Angeles |
Summer & Winter Sports
The summer and winter sports are: IPC Alpine Skiing, IPC Biathlon, IPC Cross Country, IPC Swimming, IPC Athletics, IPC Power Lifting, IPC Shooting, IPC Ice Sledge Hockey, IPC Wheelchair Dance Sport, Archery, Boccia, Canoe, Cycling, Equestrian, Football 5 aside, Football 7 aside, Goalball, Judo, Rowing, Sailing, Sitting Volleyball, Table Tennis, Triathlon, Wheelchair Basketball, Wheelchair Curling, Wheelchair Fencing, Wheelchair Rugby and Wheelchair Tennis.
Page Reference
If you quote information from this page in your work, then the reference for this page is:
- MACKENZIE, B. (2004) The Paralympics Games [WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/paralympics.htm [Accessed