Paralympic Games

Paralympic Games

The Paralympic Games are a major international multi-sport event involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power (e.g. paraplegia and quadriplegia, muscular dystrophy, post-polio syndrome, spina bifida), impaired passive range of movement, limb deficiency (e.g. amputation or dysmelia), leg length difference, short stature, hypertonia, ataxia, athetosis, vision impairment and intellectual impairment. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Games in Seoul, South Korea, are held almost immediately following the respective Olympic Games. All Paralympic Games are governed by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

File:Paralympic Games logo.svg

The Paralympic flag

History

The Paralympic Games have grown from a small gathering of British World War II veterans in 1948 to become one of the largest international sporting events by the early 21st century. The name "Paralympic" derives from the Greek preposition "para" (beside or alongside) and thus refers to a competition held in parallel with the Olympic Games. The Summer and Winter Paralympic Games are the third and fourth-largest sporting events in the world, surpassed only by the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup.

Classification

In the Paralympic Games, athletes are classified according to their physical abilities to ensure fair competition. Classifications are specific to each sport and are determined by a variety of factors including muscle strength, limb mobility, vision and cognitive ability.

Sports

The Paralympic Games include a wide range of sports that are a part of the Olympic program. Some of these sports include wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, swimming, athletics, and cycling.

See also

• List of Paralympic Games host cities
• Paralympic sports
• Paralympic symbols

References

Template:Paralympics-stub

‎

‎