A Brief History of the Paralympics and Its Impact on Athletes with Disabilities
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games finished off strong on August 8th, with the Paralympic Games creeping behind in two weeks. According to the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the term “Paralympic” comes from the Greek root word “para” (beside) and the term “Olympic”, because of this, the Paralympics are seen as parallel to the Olympics.
As of now, sports such as archery, equestrian, powerlifting and boccia are played, just to name a few events.
Athletic events for people with disabilities have been around for quite some time. However, there was a huge surge after World War 2 since there were several veterans and civilians who were injured. It started off as the Stoke Mandeville Games in 1948 before it became the Paralympic Games in 1960, which was hosted in Rome, Italy. Over the years, various organizations participated to advocate for various disabilities such as amputees, cerebral palsy, and more. Eventually, the International Paralympic Committee was founded in 1989 in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Now, what makes the Paralympic Games so significant to people with disabilities?
The Paralympic Games play a role in changing how people think about disabilities. For so long, society has viewed individuals who are disabled as weak; however, the Paralympics provides a platform for athletes to prove everyone wrong. According to the IPC, the most successful Paralympic Games was held in London in 2012. While there were a lot of factors that contributed to London 2012’s success -- the “Transforming Lives Makes Sense for Everyone” campaign certainly served as a catalyst. This success drastically affected how people with disabilities were perceived to the public (in Great Britain, specifically).
In a 2012 article published on the BBC, research showed that three out of four Brits had a more positive outlook on people who are disabled. Though the responses varied a bit, 79% of non-disabled adults felt that perceptions around disability had improved, whereas only 65% disabled adults felt that their image had improved. But regardless, there was significant change in how adults who were disabled were treated. The Office of National Statistics reported that 3.85 million workers with disabilities were employed in Great Britain -- far more than previous years.
The Paralympics significance is furthered by its education program called I’mPOSSIBLE, which was developed by the IPC to teach young people the Paralympics core message about being inclusive and reducing the stigma around disability.
Paralympians such as Sophie Christiansen, who won three gold medals at London 2012, witnessed the impact that the games had on British society. Building positive visibility is key, and more work is necessary, but there’s no denying that the Paralympics is important to both athletes and non-athletes who have disabilities. While the Paralympic Games may not get as much media attention as the Olympics, they are just as important and deserve the same recognition. Since the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games is around the corner: advocacy shouldn’t stop at one successful event; it must be consistent.
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