The History of the Paralympics

The Paralympics are an international sporting event coinciding with the Olympic Games. They offer an opportunity for athletes with physical or vision disabilities to compete. The Games began in the middle of the 20th century and have grown since. Despite some controversies, the Paralympics have successfully achieved international status as a legitimate sporting event.

  1. Origins

    • The Paralympics began during the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. Stoke Mandeville Hospital, led by Dr. Ludwig Guttmann, organized a competition for veterans of World War II with spinal cord injuries. Four years later, the competition was expanded to include Dutch veterans with similar injuries, making the Stoke Mandeville Games the first international sporting event for people with disabilities.

    Significance

    • The first official Paralympics were held in conjunction with the 1960 Olympic Games. While not associated with the Olympics itself, the competition in Rome featured the first events open to athletes with disabilities from all over the world, not just veterans. It wasn't until the 1976 Games, however, that athletes with non-spinal injuries took part.

    Size

    • Athletic contests at the Paralympics have increased dramatically since its inception in 1960. 400 athletes competed at the first Paralympics in Rome, and the number increased over the years. When the Beijing Paralympics took place in 2008, there were over 4,200 athletes competing in the Games, with representatives from 148 countries.

    Geography

    • Despite the fact that the Paralympics took place during the same time frame as the Olympics, the Games for people with disabilities were not held in the same cities as the Olympics. This changed in 1988 when the International Olympic Committee signed an agreement with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to merge the Games. As of 2012, the Host Cities of the Games are responsible for providing facilities for both of the international competitions.

    Considerations

    • The Paralympics faced a number of controversies throughout the years involving doping and cheating. In the 1992 Barcelona Games, five athletes were found to have been under the influence of performance-enhancing drugs, prompting the IPC to institute more stringent testing regulations. The most controversial event occurred at the 2000 Sydney Games. The Spanish basketball team in the intellectual difficulties competition featured a number of players who were not disabled. This caused the IPC to re-evaluate the addition of intellectually challenged athletes into the Games.