Winter Paralympic Games

Tara Gleason & Joe Galarza

What are the Paralympic Games?

An international sport event that gives world-class athletes living with a disability a chance to compete. This includes:

• Mobility disabilities• Amputees• Visual disabilities• Those with cerebral palsy

Games are held every 4 years, following the Olympic Games, and are governed by the International

Paralympic Committee (IPC)

Origin of the Paralympic Games• Dates back to 1948 when

Ludwig Guttmann organized a sports competition which involved World War II veterans that had spinal injuries– He believed sport competitions

were an excellent tool for rehabilitation

The name derives from the Greek “para” (“besides” or “alongside”) and thus refers to a competition held in parallel with the Olympic Games

First Winter Games!

• Hosted in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden in 1976 • Alpine and Nordic skiing for amputees and visually

impaired athletes where the main events• ice sledge racing was included as a demonstration event.• There were over 250 athletes from 16 countries in

attendance• this was first time athletes with impairments other than

wheelchair athletes were permitted to compete.

HistoryYear Games Host City Country

1976 Winter Paralympics I Örnsköldsvik, Sweden1980 Winter Paralympics II Geilo, Norway1984 Winter Paralympics III Innsbruck, Austria1988 Winter Paralympics IV Innsbruck, Austria1992 Winter Paralympics V Tignes – Albertville1994 Winter Paralympics VI Lillehammer, Norway1998 Winter Paralympics VII Nagano, Japan2002 Winter Paralympics VIII Salt Lake City, United States2006 Winter Paralympics IX Turin, Italy2010 Winter Paralympics X Vancouver, Canada2014 Winter Paralympics XI Sochi, Russia

SPORTS!

• Five sports were on the 2010 program:

• Apline Skiing• Biathlon Cross-country

skiing• Wheelchair curling• Sledge hockey

Disability Categories for Paralympic Games

Amputee: Athletes with a partial or total loss of at least one limb.

Cerebral Palsy: Athletes with non-progressive brain damage, for example cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, stroke or similar disabilities affecting muscle control, balance or coordination.

Wheelchair: Athletes with spinal cord injuries and other disabilities which require them to compete in a wheelchair.

Visually Impaired: Athletes with vision impairment ranging from partial vision, sufficient to be judged legally blind, to total blindness.

Athletes with a physical disability that do not fall strictly under one of the other five categories, such as dwarfism, multiple sclerosis or congenital deformities of the limb are also eligible