Paralympic Games - wikipedia Paralympic Games For the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, see 2016 Summer Paralympics. For the next Winter Games in Pyeongchang, see 2018 Winter Paralympics. Paralympic Games Main topics Charter Host cities IPC NPCs Medal tables Medalists Sports Symbols Games Summer Paralympic Games Winter Paralympic Games Disability Theory and models Disability theory Ableism / Disablism Medical model Social model Education Mainstreaming Individualized Education Program ( IEP ) Special needs Special school Special education Learning disability Therapy Physical Occupational Speech Societal implications Disability rights movement Inclusion Normalization People - first language Pejorative terms Personal assistance Unlicensed assistive personnel ( ADLs ) Orthotics and braces Prosthetics Assistive technology Assisted living Mobility aid Physical accessibility Universal design Web accessibility Socioeconomic assistance Social Security Disability Insurance Supplemental Security Income Ticket to Work Disability Living Allowance Disabled students allowance Disabled Persons Railcard Freedom Pass Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped Groups Organizations National Telecommuting Institute Society for Disability Studies Disabled Peoples ' International ( DPI ) Visitability Disabled sports Special Olympics Paralympic Games Deaflympics Invictus Games Culture Disability in the arts Disability art Disability in the media Disability portal Disability Lists The Paralympic Games is a major international multi-sport event involving athletes with a range of 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. The purpose of the games is to promote fairness, eliminate discrimination against individuals with a disability, and to allow anyone to participate in disability sport. 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 ). The Paralympics has 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 Paralympics has grown from 400 athletes with a disability from 23 countries in 1960 to thousands of competitors from over 100 countries in the London 2012 Games. Paralympians strive for equal treatment with non-disabled Olympic athletes, but there is a large funding gap between Olympic and Paralympic athletes. The Paralympic Games are organized in parallel with the Olympic Games, while the IOC - recognized Special Olympics World Games include athletes with intellectual disabilities, and the Deaflympics include deaf athletes. Given the wide variety of disabilities that Paralympic athletes have, there are several categories in which the athletes compete. The allowable disabilities are broken down into ten eligible impairment types. The categories are impaired muscle power, impaired passive range of movement, limb deficiency, leg length difference, short stature, hypertonia, ataxia, athetosis, vision impairment and intellectual impairment. These categories are further broken down into classifications, which vary from sport to sport. Contents 1 Forerunners 2 Milestones 3 Winter Games 4 Recent games 5 International Paralympic Committee 6 Name and symbols 7 Ceremonies 7.1 Opening 7.2 Closing 7.3 Medal presentation 8 Equality 8.1 Relationship with the Olympics 8.1. 1 Paralympians at the Olympics 8.1. 2 Funding 8.2 Media coverage 8.3 Outside the games 9 Classification 9.1 Categories 9.2 Classification system 9.2. 1 Medical classification ( until 1980s ) 9.2. 2 Functional classification ( since 1980s ) 10 Sports 11 Cheating 12 Notable champions and achievements 13 Host cities 14 See also 15 Notes 16 References 17 Further reading 18 External links Forerunners Further information : World Wheelchair and Amputee Games Sir Ludwig Guttmann Athletes with disabilities did compete in the Olympic Games prior to the advent of the Paralympics. The first athlete to do so was German American gymnast George Eyser in 1904, who had one artificial leg. Hungarian Karoly Takacs competed in shooting events in both the 1948 and 1952 Summer Olympics. He was a right - arm amputee and could shoot left - handed. Another disabled athlete to appear in the Olympics prior to the Paralympic Games was Lis Hartel, a Danish equestrian athlete who had contracted polio in 1943 and won a silver medal in the dressage event. The first organized athletic day for disabled athletes that coincided with the Olympic Games took place on the day of the opening of the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom. Jewish - German born Dr. Ludwig Guttmann of Stoke Mandeville Hospital, who had been helped to flee Nazi Germany by the Council for Assisting Refugee Academics ( CARA ) in 1939, hosted a sports competition for British World War II veteran patients with spinal cord injuries. The first games were called the 1948 International Wheelchair Games, and were intended to coincide with the 1948 Olympics. Dr. Guttman 's aim was to create an elite sports competition for people with disabilities that would be equivalent to the Olympic Games. The games were held again at the same location in 1952, and Dutch and Israeli veterans took part alongside the British, making it the first international competition of its kind. These early competitions, also known as the Stoke Mandeville Games, have been described as the precursors of the Paralympic Games. Milestones Further information : Chronology of the Paralympic Movement There have been several milestones in the Paralympic movement. The first official Paralympic Games, no longer open solely to war veterans, was held in Rome in 1960. 400 athletes from 23 countries competed at the 1960 Games. Since 1960, the Paralympic Games have taken place in the same year as the Olympic Games. The Games were initially open only to athletes in wheelchairs ; at the 1976 Summer Games, athletes with different disabilities were included for the first time at a Summer Paralympics. With the inclusion of more disability classifications the 1976 Summer Games expanded to 1,600 athletes from 40 countries. The 1988 Summer Paralympics in Seoul, South Korea, was another milestone for the Paralympic movement. It was in Seoul that the Paralympic Summer Games were held directly after the Olympic Summer Games, in the same host city, and using the same facilities. This set a precedent that was followed in 1992, 1996 and 2000. It was eventually formalized in an agreement between the International Paralympic Committee ( IPC ) and the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ) in 2001, and was recently extended through 2020. The 1992 Winter Paralympics were the first Winter Games to use the same facilities as the Winter Olympics. Winter Games Main article : Winter Paralympic Games The first Winter Paralympic Games were held in 1976 in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden. This was the first Paralympics in which multiple categories of athletes with disabilities could compete. The Winter Games were celebrated every four years on the same year as their summer counterpart, just as the Olympics were. This tradition was upheld until the 1992 Games in Albertville, France ; after that, beginning with the 1994 Games, the Winter Paralympics and the Winter Olympics have been held in those even - numbered years separate from the Summer Games. Recent Games The Paralympic games were designed to emphasize the participants ' athletic achievements and not their disability. Recent games have emphasized that these games are about ability and not disability. The movement has grown dramatically since its early days -- for example, the number of athletes participating in the Summer Paralympic games has increased from 400 athletes in Rome in 1960 to over 3,900 athletes from 164 countries in London in 2012. Both the Paralympic Summer and Winter Games are recognized on the world stage. The Paralympics is no longer held solely for British war veterans or just for athletes in wheelchairs, but for elite athletes with a wide variety of disabilities from all over the world. International Paralympic Committee Main article : International Paralympic Committee IPC headquarters in Bonn First Paralympic symbol ( 1988 -- 1994 ) used five pa. The IPC is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement. It comprises 176 National Paralympic Committees ( NPC ) and four disability - specific international sports federations. The president of the IPC is Philip Craven, a former Paralympian from Great Britain. In his capacity as head of the IPC, Craven is also a member of the International Olympic Committee. The IPC 's international headquarters are in Bonn, Germany. The IPC is responsible for organizing the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. It also serves as the International Federation for nine sports ( Paralympic athletics, Paralympic swimming, Paralympic shooting, Paralympic powerlifting, Para-alpine skiing, Paralympic biathlon, Paralympic cross-country skiing, ice sledge hockey and Wheelchair DanceSport ). This requires the IPC to supervise and coordinate the World Championships and other competitions for each of the nine sports it regulates. IPC membership also includes National Paralympic Committees and international sporting federations. International Federations are independent sport federations recognized by the IPC as the sole representative of a Paralympic Sport. International Federations responsibilities include technical jurisdiction and guidance over the competition and training venues of their respective sports during the Paralympic Games. The IPC also recognizes media partners, certifies officials, judges, and is responsible for enforcing the bylaws of the Paralympic Charter. The IPC has a cooperative relationship with the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ). Delegates of the IPC are also members of the IOC and participate on IOC committees and commissions. The two governing bodies remain distinct, with separate Games, despite the close working relationship. Name and symbols Main article : Paralympic symbols The Paralympic flag Although the name was originally coined as a portmanteau combining `` paraplegic '' ( due to its origins as games for people with spinal injuries ) and `` Olympic, '' the inclusion of other disability groups meant that this was no longer considered very accurate. The present formal explanation for the name is that it derives from the Greek preposition παρά, pará ( `` beside '' or `` alongside '' ) and thus refers to a competition held in parallel with the Olympic Games. The Summer Games of 1988 held in Seoul was the first time the term `` Paralympic '' came into official use. `` Spirit in Motion '' is the motto for the Paralympic movement. The symbol for the Paralympics contains three colours, red, blue, and green, which are the colours most widely represented in the flags of nations. The colours are each in the shape of an Agito ( which is Latin for `` I move '' ), which is the name given to an asymmetrical crescent specially designed for the Paralympic movement. The three Agitos circle a central point, which is a symbol for the athletes congregating from all points of the globe. The motto and symbol of the IPC were changed in 2003 to their current versions. The change was intended to convey the idea that Paralympians have a spirit of competition and that the IPC as an organization realizes its potential and is moving forward to achieve it. The vision of the IPC is, `` To enable Paralympic athletes to achieve sporting excellence and to inspire and excite the world. '' The Paralympic anthem is `` Hymne de l'Avenir '' or `` Anthem of the Future ''. It was composed by Thierry Darnis and adopted as the official anthem in March 1996. Ceremonies Opening Opening ceremony of the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens As mandated by the Paralympic Charter, various elements frame the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games. Most of these rituals were established at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. The ceremony typically starts with the hoisting of the host country 's flag and a performance of its national anthem. Unlike the Olympic Games, immediately after the national anthem the athletes parade into the stadium grouped by nation. Since the 1988 Summer Paralympics, the nations enter the stadium alphabetically according to the host country 's chosen language, though with the host country 's athletes being the last to enter. Since the 1988 Summer Paralympics, the host nation presents artistic displays of music, singing, dance, and theatre representative of its culture. Speeches are given, formally opening the games. Finally, the Paralympic torch is brought into the stadium and passed on until it reaches the final torch carrier -- often a Paralympic athlete from the host nation -- who lights the Paralympic flame in the stadium 's cauldron. Closing The closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games takes place after all sporting events have concluded. Flag - bearers from each participating country enter, followed by the athletes who enter together, without any national distinction. The Paralympic flag is taken down. Since the 1988 Winter Paralympics, with some exceptions, the national flag of the country hosting the next Summer or Winter Paralympic Games is hoisted while the corresponding national anthem is played. The games are officially closed, and the Paralympic flame is extinguished. After these compulsory elements, the next host nation briefly introduces itself with artistic displays of dance and theater representative of its culture. Medal presentation A medal ceremony during the 2010 Winter Paralympics A medal ceremony is held after each Paralympic event is concluded. The winner, second and third - place competitors or teams stand on top of a three - tiered rostrum to be awarded their respective medals. After the medals are given out by an IPC member, the national flags of the three medalists are raised while the national anthem of the gold medallists country plays. Volunteering citizens of the host country also act as hosts during the medal ceremonies, as they aid the officials who present the medals and act as flag - bearers. For every Paralympic event, the respective medal ceremony is held, at most, one day after the event 's final. Equality Relationship with the Olympics In 2001 the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ) and the International Paralympic Committee ( IPC ) signed an agreement which guaranteed that host cities would be contracted to manage both the Olympic and Paralympic Games. This agreement was to remain in effect until the 2012 Summer Olympics, but was extended, encompassing all Summer and Winter games up until the 2020 Summer Olympics. The IOC has written its commitment to equal access to athletics for all people into its charter, which states, The practice of sport is a human right. Every individual must have the possibility of practising sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play... Any form of discrimination with regard to a country or a person on grounds of race, religion, politics, gender or otherwise is incompatible with belonging to the Olympic Movement. While the charter is silent on discrimination specifically related to disability ; given the language in the charter regarding discrimination it is reasonable to infer that discrimination on the basis of disability would be against the ideals of the Olympic Charter and the IOC. This is also consistent with the Paralympic Charter, which forbids discrimination on the basis of political, religious, economic, disability, gender, sexual orientation or racial reasons. Chairman of the London organising committee, Sebastian Coe, said about the 2012 Summer Paralympics and 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England, that, `` We want to change public attitudes towards disability, celebrate the excellence of Paralympic sport and to enshrine from the very outset that the two Games are an integrated whole. '' The 2014 Winter Paralympic Games is the first such Paralympics hosted by Russia. Russia ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities during that period. Notably at 2010 Vancouver their Paralympic team topped the medal table at the Winter Paralympics, while their Olympic team performed well below expectations at the Winter Olympics. This led the media to highlight the contrast between the achievements of the country 's Olympic and Paralympic delegations, despite the greater attention and funding awarded to the Olympic athletes. The Russian Federation organizers of the 2014 Winter Paralympic Games have, since 2007, made efforts to make the host city Sochi more accessible. Paralympians at the Olympics See also : List of athletes who have competed in the Paralympics and Olympics Oscar Pistorius at a track meet on 8 July 2007 Paralympic athletes have sought equal opportunities to compete at the Olympic Games. The precedent was set by Neroli Fairhall, a Paralympic archer from New Zealand, who competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. In 2008 Oscar Pistorius, a South African sprinter, attempted to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Pistorius had both his legs amputated below the knee and races with two carbon fibre blades manufactured by Ossur. He holds Paralympic world record in the 400 meter event. Pistorius missed qualifying for the 2008 Summer Olympics in the 400 meter race, by 0.70 seconds. He qualified for the 2008 Summer Paralympics where he won gold medals in the 100, 200, and 400 meter sprints. In 2011, Pistorius qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics and competed in two events : he made the semi-final in the 400 metres race ; and his team came 8th in the final of the 4 × 400 metres relay race. Even though all athletes are given equal opportunities to participate in these events, such as the 400 meter race, there has been a growing conspiracy that the games may not be fair to all athletes. For example, athletes running a race with a left prosthetic leg may have the disadvantage than those with a right side prosthesis because the races are run in an anticlockwise direction, giving some athletes an advantage. Some athletes without a disability also compete at the Paralympics ; The sighted guides for athletes with a visual impairment are such a close and essential part of the competition that the athlete with visual impairment and the guide are considered a team, and both athletes are medal candidates. Funding There has been criticism for not providing equal funding to Paralympic athletes as compared to Olympic athletes. An example of this criticism was a lawsuit filed by Paralympic athletes Tony Iniguez, Scot Hollonbeck and Jacob Heilveil of the United States, in 2003. They alleged that the United States Olympic Committee ( USOC ), which also include the USOC Paralympic Division ( the National Paralympic Committee ), was underfunding American Paralympic athletes. Iniguez cited the fact that the USOC made healthcare benefits available to a smaller percentage of Paralympians, the USOC provided smaller quarterly training stipends and paid smaller financial awards for medals won at a Paralympics. US Paralympians saw this as a disadvantage for the US Paralympic athletes, as nations such as Canada and Britain supported Paralympians and Olympians virtually equally. The USOC did not deny the discrepancy in funding and contended that this was due to the fact that it did not receive any government financial support. As a result, it had to rely on revenue generated by the media exposure of its athletes. Olympic athletic success resulted in greater exposure for the USOC than Paralympic athletic achievements. The case was heard by lower courts, who ruled that the USOC has the right to allocate its finances to athletes at different rates. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court, where on September 6, 2008 it announced that it would not hear the appeal. However, during the time the lawsuit lasted ( from 2003 to 2008 ), the funding from the USOC had nearly tripled. In 2008 $11.4 million was earmarked for Paralympic athletes, up from $3 million in 2004. As with the Olympics, recent Paralympics have also been supported by contributions from major sponsors. Unlike the Olympics, where the IOC mandates that arenas be clean of sponsor logos, the Paralympics do allow the logos of official sponsors to be displayed inside arenas and on uniforms. Media coverage While the Olympic Games have experienced tremendous growth in global media coverage since the 1984 Summer Olympics, the Paralympics have been unable to maintain a consistent international media presence. Television broadcasts of Paralympic Games began in 1976, but this early coverage was confined to taped - delay releases to one nation or region. At the 1992 Summer Paralympics there were 45 hours of live coverage but it was available only in Europe. Other countries broadcast highlight packages during the Games. No meaningful improvements in coverage occurred until the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney. The 2000 Paralympics represented a significant increase in global media exposure for the Paralympic Games. A deal was reached between the Sydney Paralympic Organizing Committee ( SPOC ) and All Media Sports ( AMS ) to broadcast the Games internationally. Deals were reached with Asian, South American, and European broadcast companies to distribute coverage to as many markets as possible. The Games were also webcast for the first time. Because of these efforts the Sydney Paralympics reached a global audience estimated at 300 million people. Also significant was the fact that the organizers did not have to pay networks to televise the Games as had been done at the 1992 and 1996 Games. Despite these advances consistent media attention has been a challenge, which was evidenced in the coverage in Great Britain of the 2010 Winter Paralympics. In the UK, it is a legal requirement for the games to be broadcast by a free - to - air broadcaster ; the British Broadcasting Corporation ( BBC ) was criticized for its minimal coverage of the 2010 Winter Paralympics as compared to its coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympics. The BBC announced it would stream some content on its website and show a one - hour highlight program after the Games ended. For the Winter Olympics the BBC aired 160 hours of coverage. The response from the BBC was that budget constraints and the `` time zone factor '' necessitated a limited broadcast schedule. The reduction in coverage was done in spite of increased ratings for the 2008 Summer Paralympics, which was watched by 23 % of the population of Great Britain. In Norway, the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation ( NRK ) broadcast 30 hours of the 2010 Winter Games live. NRK - sport were critical of parts of the TV production from Vancouver, and notified the EBU of issues such as the biathlon coverage excluding the shooting, and cross-country skiing with skiers in the distance, making it hard to follow the progress of the competition. NRK were far more pleased with the production of the ice sledge hockey and wheelchair curling events, which they felt reached the same level as the Olympic Games. Public - service broadcaster Channel 4 acquired the rights to the Paralympics in the United Kingdom for the 2012 Summer Paralympics, and planned to air extensive coverage of the games ; Channel 4 aired 150 hours of coverage, and also offered mobile apps, and three dedicated streaming channels of additional coverage on Sky, Freesat, Virgin Media and Channel 4 's website. '' Channel 4 also made a push to heighten the profile of the Paralympics in the country by producing a 2 minute trailer for its coverage, `` Meet the Superhumans '' ; which premièred simultaneously on over 70 commercial channels in the UK on 17 July 2012. Channel 4 have also acquired the rights to the 2014 Winter Paralympics and the 2016 Summer Paralympics. American broadcaster NBC Sports, who also owns the broadcast rights to the Olympics, has been criticised by athletes and IPC officials for airing too little coverage of the Paralympics ; the lack of coverage from NBC in Athens was a cause for concern from senior IPC officials, especially given that the United States was bidding for the 2012 Games. In 2012 NBC only produced around 5 hours of tape delayed highlights from the Games, airing on the pay TV channel NBC Sports Network, and did not cover the ceremonies at all. IPC president Philip Craven was vocal about NBC 's reluctance to air coverage in 2012, expressing his disappointment for American athletes and viewers who would miss the `` amazing images '' the games would bring, and remarking that `` some people think that North America always lead ( s ) on everything, and on this they do n't. It 's about time they caught up. '' Following the closing ceremonies, Craven hinted that the IPC might put greater scrutiny on broadcasters at future editions of the Paralympics ( or may strip NBC of its broadcast rights ), by stating that `` if we find our values do n't fit, we 'll have to go somewhere else. '' NBC would pick up broadcast rights to the 2014 and 2016 Paralympics, promising significantly increased coverage than before. Outside the Games A 2010 study by the University of British Columbia ( UBC ) on the Olympic Games Impact ( OGI ), showed that of roughly 1,600 Canadian respondents, 41 -- 50 percent believed the 2010 Paralympic and Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada triggered additional accessibility of buildings, sidewalks and public spaces. 23 percent of employers said the Games had increased their willingness to hire people with disabilities. Chief Executive Officer for the International Paralympic Committee, Xavier Gonzalez, said about the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing, China, that `` In China, the ( Paralympic ) Games were really a transformation tool for changing attitudes across the board in China towards people with disability, to building accessibility facilities in the city, to changing laws to allow people with a disability to be part of society. '' Classification Further information : Disability sport classification Olena Iurkovska of Ukraine competing on cross-country sit - skis at the 2010 Winter Paralympics. The International Paralympic Committee ( IPC ) has established ten disability categories. Athletes are divided within each category according to their level of impairment, in a functional classification system which differs from sport to sport. Categories The IPC has established ten disability categories, including physical, visual, and intellectual impairment. Athletes with one of these disabilities can compete in the Paralympics though not every sport can allow for every disability category. These categories apply to both Summer and Winter Paralympics. Physical Impairment -- There are eight different types of physical impairment : Impaired muscle power -- With impairments in this category, the force generated by muscles, such as the muscles of one limb, one side of the body or the lower half of the body is reduced, ( e.g. spinal cord injury, spina bifida, post-polio syndrome ). Impaired passive range of movement -- Range of movement in one or more joints is reduced in a systematic way. Acute conditions such as arthritis are not included. Loss of limb or limb deficiency -- A total or partial absence of bones or joints from partial or total loss due to illness, trauma, or congenital limb deficiency ( e.g. dysmelia ). Leg - length difference -- Significant bone shortening occurs in one leg due to congenital deficiency or trauma. Short stature -- Standing height is reduced due to shortened legs, arms and trunk, which are due to a musculoskeletal deficit of bone or cartilage structures. ( e.g. achondroplasia, growth hormone deficiency, osteogenesis imperfecta ) Hypertonia -- Hypertonia is marked by an abnormal increase in muscle tension and reduced ability of a muscle to stretch. Hypertonia may result from injury, disease, or conditions which involve damage to the central nervous system ( e.g. cerebral palsy ). Ataxia -- Ataxia is an impairment that consists of a lack of coordination of muscle movements ( e.g. cerebral palsy, Friedreich 's ataxia, multiple sclerosis ). Athetosis -- Athetosis is generally characterized by unbalanced, involuntary movements and a difficulty maintaining a symmetrical posture ( e.g. cerebral palsy, choreoathetosis ). Visual Impairment -- Athletes with visual impairment ranging from partial vision, sufficient to be judged legally blind, to total blindness. This includes impairment of one or more component of the visual system ( eye structure, receptors, optic nerve pathway, and visual cortex ). The sighted guides for athletes with a visual impairment are such a close and essential part of the competition that the athlete with visual impairment and the guide are considered a team. Beginning in 2012, these guides ( along with sighted goalkeepers in 5 - a-side football became eligible to receive medals of their own. Intellectual Disability -- Athletes with a significant impairment in intellectual functioning and associated limitations in adaptive behaviour. The IPC primarily serves athletes with physical disabilities, but the disability group Intellectual Disability has been added to some Paralympic Games. This includes only elite athletes with intellectual disabilities diagnosed before the age of 18. However, the IOC - recognized Special Olympics World Games are open to all people with intellectual disabilities. Classification system Within the disability categories, the athletes still need to be divided according to level of impairment. The classification systems differ from sport to sport and are intended to open up sports to as many athletes as possible who can participate in fair competitions against athletes with similar levels of ability. The biggest challenge in the classification system is how to account for the wide variety and severity of disabilities. Consequently, there is a range of impairment within most classifications. Medical classification ( until 1980s ) From its inception until the 1980s, the Paralympic system for classifying athletes consisted of a medical evaluation and diagnosis of impairment. An athlete 's medical condition was the only factor used to determine what class they competed in. For example, an athlete who had a spinal cord injury that resulted in lower limb paresis, would not compete in the same wheelchair race as an athlete with a double above - knee amputation. The fact that their disability caused the same impairment did not factor into classification determination, the only consideration was their medical diagnosis. It was not until views on disabled athletics shifted from just a form of rehabilitation to an end in itself, that the classification system changed from medical diagnosis to a focus on the functional abilities of the athlete. Functional classification ( since 1980s ) The Swedish goalball team at the 2004 Summer Paralympics While there is no clear date when the shift occurred, a functional classification system became the norm for disabled athletic classification in the 1980s. In a functional system the focus is on what effect the athlete 's impairment has on his or her athletic performance. Under this system, athletes with total loss of function in their legs will compete together in most sports, because their functional loss is the same and the reason for the loss is immaterial. The only exception to the functional system is the classification format used by International Blind Sport Federation ( IBSA ), which still uses a medically based system. Some sports are only held for certain disability types. For example, goalball is only for visually impaired athletes. The Paralympics recognizes three different grades of visual impairment, consequently all competitors in goalball must wear a visor or `` black out mask '' so that athletes with less visual impairment will not have an advantage. Other sports, like athletics, are open to athletes with a wide variety of impairments. In athletics, participants are broken down into a range of classes based on the disability they have and then they are placed in a classification within that range based on their level of impairment. For example : classes 11 -- 13 are for visually impaired athletes, which class they are in depends on their level of visual impairment. There are also team competitions such as wheelchair rugby. Members of the team are each given a point value based on their activity limitation. A lower score indicates a more severe activity limitation than a higher score. A team can not have more than a certain maximum total of points on the field of play at the same time to ensure equal competition. For example, in wheelchair rugby the five players ' combined disability number must total no more than eight points. Sports Main article : Paralympic sports There are twenty - two sports on the Summer Paralympic program and five sports on the Winter Paralympics program. Within some of the sports are several events. For example, alpine skiing has downhill, super combined, super-G, slalom, giant slalom. The IPC has governance over several of the sports but not all of them. Other international organizations, known as International Sports Federations ( IF ), notably the International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation ( IWAS ), the International Blind Sports Federation ( IBSA ), and the Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association ( CP - ISRA ), govern some sports that are specific to certain disability groups. There are national chapters for these International Sport Federations including National Paralympic Committees, which are responsible for recruitment of athletes and governance of sports at the national level. Cheating Main article : Cheating at the Paralympic Games After the 2000 Sydney games, a Spanish basketball player alleged that several members of the gold - medal winning Spanish basketball intellectually disabled ( ID ) team were not disabled. He claimed that only two athletes out of the twelve - member team met the qualifications of an intellectually disabled athlete. A controversy ensued and the IPC called on the Spanish National Paralympic Committee to launch an investigation. The investigation uncovered several Spanish athletes who had flouted the ID rules. In an interview with the president of the federation that oversees ID competition, Fernando Martin Vicente admitted that athletes around the world were breaking the ID eligibility rules. The IPC responded by starting an investigation of its own. The results of the IPC 's investigation confirmed the Spanish athlete 's allegations and also determined that the incident was not isolated to the basketball ID event or to Spanish athletes. As a result, all ID competitions were suspended indefinitely. The ban was lifted after the 2008 Games after work had been done to tighten the criteria and controls governing admission of athletes with intellectual disabilities. Four sports, swimming, athletics, table tennis and rowing, were anticipated to hold competitions for ID athletes at the 2012 Summer Paralympics. The Paralympics have also been tainted by steroid use. At the 2008 Games in Beijing, three powerlifters and a German basketball player were banned after having tested positive for banned substances. This was a decrease in comparison to the ten powerlifters and one track athlete who were banned from the 2000 Games. German skier Thomas Oelsner became the first Winter Paralympian to test positive for steroids. He had won two gold medals at the 2002 Winter Paralympics, but his medals were stripped after his positive drug test. At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Swedish curler Glenn Ikonen tested positive for a banned substance and was suspended for six months by the IPC. He was removed from the rest of the curling competition but his team was allowed to continue. The 54 - year - old curler said his doctor had prescribed a medication on the banned substances list. Another concern now facing Paralympic officials is the technique of `` boosting ''. Athletes can artificially increase their blood pressure, often by self - harming, which has been shown to improve performance by up to 15 %. This is most effective in the endurance sports such as cross-country skiing. To increase blood pressure athletes will deliberately cause trauma to limbs below a spinal injury. This trauma can include breaking bones, strapping extremities in too tightly, and using high - pressure compression stockings. The injury is painless but it does affect the athlete 's blood pressure. Another potential concern is the use of gene therapy among Paralympic athletes. All Paralympic athletes are banned from enhancing their abilities through gene doping, but it is extremely difficult to differentiate these concepts. The World Anti-Doping Agency is currently researching both gene doping and gene therapy, in part to discern the boundary between the two closely related concepts. The IPC have been working with the World Anti-Doping Agency since 2003, to ensure compliance with WADA 's anti-doping code among its Paralympic athletes. The IPC has also promised to continue increasing the number of athletes tested at each of its Games, in order to further minimize the possible effect of doping in Paralympic sports. Mandatory in - and out - of competition testing has also been implemented by the IPC to further ensure all of its athletes are performing in compliance with WADA regulations. Notable champions and achievements Further information : Lists of Paralympic medalists and List of multiple Paralympic gold medalists Trischa Zorn of the United States is the most decorated Paralympian in history. She competed in the blind swimming events and won a total of 55 medals, 41 of which are gold. Her Paralympic career spanned 24 years from 1980 to 2004. She was also an alternate on the 1980 American Olympic swim team, but did not go to the Olympics due to a boycott by the United States and several of its allies. Ragnhild Myklebust of Norway holds the record for the most medals ever won at the Winter Paralympic Games. Competing in a variety of events in 1988, 1992, 1994 and 2002, she won a total of 22 medals, of which 17 were gold. After winning five gold medals at the 2002 Games she retired at the age of 58. Neroli Fairhall, a paraplegic archer from New Zealand, was the first paraplegic competitor, and the first Paralympian, to participate in the Olympic Games, when she competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. She placed thirty - fourth in the Olympic archery competition, and won a Paralympic gold medal in the same event. Host cities Main article : List of Paralympic Games host cities List of Paralympics host cities Year Summer Paralympic Games Winter Paralympic Games Edition Host ( s ) Edition Host ( s ) 1960 Rome 1964 II Tokyo 1968 III Tel Aviv 1972 IV Heidelberg 1976 V Toronto Örnsköldsvik 1980 VI Arnhem, Netherlands II Geilo 1984 VII New York Stoke Mandeville III Innsbruck VIII Seoul IV Innsbruck 1992 IX Barcelona & Madrid V Tignes & Albertville VI Lillehammer X Atlanta 1998 VII Nagano 2000 XI Sydney 2002 VIII Salt Lake City XII Athens 2006 IX Turin 2008 XIII Beijing X Vancouver 2012 XIV London 2014 XI Sochi 2016 XV Rio de Janeiro 2018 XII PyeongChang 2020 XVI Tokyo 2022 XIII Beijing 2024 XVII Paris 2026 XIV 2028 XVIII Los Angeles See also Paralympics portal All - time Paralympic Games medal table Commonwealth Paraplegic Games Cybathlon Notes Jump up ^ `` `` A More Equitable Society '' : The Politics of Global Fairness in Paralympic S... : Discover ``. eds.a.ebscohost.com. Retrieved 2017 - 10 - 24. Jump up ^ Dehghansai, Nima ; Lemez, Srdjan ; Wattie, Nick ; Baker, Joseph ( January 2017 ). `` A Systematic Review of Influences on Development of Athletes With Disabilities ''. Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly. 34 ( 1 ) : 72 -- 90. doi : 10.1123 / APAQ. 2016 - 0030. Jump up ^ The World Games for the Deaf and the Paralympic Games, International Committee of Sports for the Deaf ( CISS ), December 1996 ^ Jump up to : Special Olympics and the Olympic Movement, Official website of the Special Olympics, 2006 Jump up ^ http://www.paralympic.org/classification Jump up ^ DePauw and Gavron ( 2005 ), p. 38 Jump up ^ Correia, Susana ( February 2008 ). `` Paralympics History ''. Accessible Portugal Online Magazine. Archived from the original on February 6, 2009. Jump up ^ `` SPSL Archive ''. Rsl.ox.ac.uk. 1933 - 12 - 24. Retrieved 2012 - 08 - 17. ^ Jump up to : `` History of the Paralympic Movement ''. Canadian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on August 2, 2009. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ `` Paralympics traces roots to Second World War ''. Canadian Broadcasting Centre. 2008 - 09 - 05. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 14. ^ Jump up to : `` History of the Paralympic Games ''. Government of Canada. Archived from the original on 2010 - 03 - 12. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ Galligan ( 2000 ), pp. 89 -- 90 Jump up ^ DePauw and Gavron ( 2005 ) p. 92 Jump up ^ `` Paralympics 2012 : London to host ' first truly global Games ' ''. BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 August 2012. ^ Jump up to : `` About the IPC ''. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 06. Jump up ^ `` Paralympic Games ''. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ Rosner, David ( 2000 - 10 - 18 ). `` Paralympics history ''. Sports Illustrated. CNNSI.com. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 06. ^ Jump up to : http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/national-paralympic-committees Jump up ^ http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/international-organization-for-the-disabled Jump up ^ http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/governing-board Jump up ^ `` Sir Philip Craven ''. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 14. Jump up ^ http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/management-team Jump up ^ http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/international-sport-federations Jump up ^ `` IPC Handbook ''. International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2010 - 04 - 21. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. Jump up ^ Gilbert and Schantz ( 2008 ) p. 170 Jump up ^ `` History of the Movement ''. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2012 - 05 - 04. Jump up ^ `` Paralympic Symbol & Motto ''. International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2009 - 10 - 06. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ Howe ( 2008 ), p. 59 Jump up ^ `` IPC Intellectual Property Rights '' ( PDF ). International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on June 19, 2010. Retrieved 2010 - 05 - 03. Jump up ^ `` The Modern Olympic Games '' ( PDF ). International Olympic Committee. p. 5. Retrieved 2008 - 08 - 29. chapter = ignored ( help ) Jump up ^ `` Paralympic opening ceremony to be ' family friendly ' ''. The Vancouver Sun. Canwest News Service. 2010 - 03 - 12. Archived from the original on 2010 - 03 - 17. Retrieved 2010 - 05 - 03. Jump up ^ IPC Handbook June 2009 Bylaws Governance and Organizational and Organizational Structure ( Google Quick View ), International Paralympic Committee ( IPC ) Jump up ^ Victory Ceremony podiums at 2010 Winter Games a testament to the mountains athletes have climbed en route to Olympic and Paralympic success, The Official website of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Archived April 10, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ Ceremonies Volunteers `` Ceremony volunteers '' Check url = value ( help ). Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Retrieved 2010 - 05 - 04. Jump up ^ `` IPC - IOC Cooperation ''. International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2009 - 09 - 08. Retrieved 2010 - 05 - 03. Jump up ^ `` The Olympic Charter '' ( PDF ). International Olympic Committee. 2010. p. 11. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. Jump up ^ Gilbert and Schantz ( 2008 ) p. 169 Jump up ^ `` Paralympic Vision and Mission '' ( PDF ). International Paralympic Committee. 2003. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. Jump up ^ Gibson, Owen ( 2010 - 05 - 04 ). `` Sainsbury 's announces sponsorship of 2012 Paralympics ''. The Guardian. London. Jump up ^ `` Russia 's Paralympic breakthrough in Vancouver ''. Russia Today. March 16, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Disabled Athletes Show Up Olympics Team ''. Moscow Times. March 18, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Sochi Paralympics confronts Russia 's attitude towards disabled - World - CBC News ''. CBC News. ^ Jump up to : `` Neroli Fairhall, Champion Archer, Dies at 61 ''. The New York Times. NYTimes.com. 2006 - 06 - 13. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ http://www.paralympic.org/world-records/athletics Jump up ^ Longman, Jere ( 2007 - 05 - 15 ). `` An Amputee Sprinter : Is He Disabled to Too - Abled ''. The New York Times. NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 08. Jump up ^ Paralympics 100m : Oscar Pistorius says past experience vital, BBC Sport, 21 May 2012 Jump up ^ `` Biomechanics : Right prosthetic legs have the edge ''. Nature. 531 ( 7595 ) : 417 -- 417. 2016 - 03 - 24. ISSN 0028 - 0836. doi : 10.1038 / 531417d. ^ Jump up to : Visually impaired skiers put fate in guide 's hands, thestar.com, March 13, 2010 ^ Jump up to : Court Lets Ruling Stand in U.S.O.C. Case, New York Times, October 6, 2008 Jump up ^ Schwarz, Alan ( 2008 - 09 - 05 ). `` Paralympic Athletes Add Equality to Their Goals ''. The New York Times. NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 08. Jump up ^ Gibson, Owen. `` Paralympics reignite the Olympic buzz but with added twists ''. The Guardian. Retrieved 31 August 2012. Jump up ^ Cashman and Darcy ( 2008 ), pp. 100 -- 101 Jump up ^ Goggin and Newell ( 2003 ), p. 91 ^ Jump up to : Sweney, Mark ( 2010 - 03 - 12 ). `` BBC criticised for scant coverage of Winter Paralympics ''. The Guardian. London : Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 30. Jump up ^ Oppgitt over elendig Paralympics - produksjon ( Norwegian ), Harstad Tidende, March 25, 2010 Jump up ^ `` Unprecedented Rolling Coverage for London 2012 IPC ''. Paralympic.org. Retrieved 2012 - 07 - 08. Jump up ^ `` Ad of the Day : Paralympic Games Forget the Olympics. This is the summer 's most stunning sports commercial ''. Adweek. Retrieved 11 August 2012. Jump up ^ Usborne, Simon ( 2012 - 07 - 19 ). `` Paralympics : Channel 4 's superhuman effort ''. London : The Independent. Retrieved 11 August 2012. Jump up ^ `` Channel 4 secures 2014 and 2016 Paralympic Games rights '' ( Press release ). International Paralympic Committee. 8 February 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013. Jump up ^ Davies, Gareth A ( 2012 - 08 - 24 ). `` Paralympics 2012 : NBC to only screen five - and - a-half hours retrospective coverage of Games ''. London : The Telegraph. Retrieved 24 August 2012. Jump up ^ `` NBC criticised Paralympics after opening ceremony blackout ''. London : The Telegraph. 2012 - 08 - 30. Retrieved 10 September 2012. Jump up ^ `` American broadcaster NBC could lose right to show Games after criticisms ''. Metro. Retrieved 10 September 2012. Jump up ^ `` Paralympic Movement given huge boost as American channels NBC and NBCSN will cover next two Games ''. The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 10 February 2014. Jump up ^ Paralympics a force for change, University of British Columbia, March 4, 2010 Jump up ^ 2010 Paralympics about changing minds, not capturing hearts, CablePulse 24, March 12, 2010 ^ Jump up to : http://www.paralympic.org/sites/default/files/document/120716152047682_classificationguide_1.pdf Jump up ^ `` Paralympics 2012 : The able - bodied athletes at the Games ''. BBC News. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2012. Jump up ^ `` Athlete Classification ''. Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2010 - 02 - 17. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 14. ^ Jump up to : `` The history of classification '' ( PDF ). International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 30. Jump up ^ `` Goalball ''. International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2009 - 10 - 24. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 08. Jump up ^ `` Athletics ''. Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2010 - 01 - 18. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ `` Wheelchair Rugby ''. International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2010 - 06 - 19. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 08. Jump up ^ `` Organization ''. International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2010 - 04 - 21. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 14. Jump up ^ `` Sport ''. International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2010 - 03 - 05. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 14. ^ Jump up to : Slot, Owen ( 2001 - 02 - 03 ). `` Cheating shame of Paralympics ''. The Daily Telegraph. London : Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ `` IPC Calls For Full Investigation ''. International Paralympic Committee. 2000 - 11 - 27. Archived from the original on 2006 - 01 - 18. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ `` IPC Suspends INAS - FID from Membership ''. International Paralympic Committee. 2001 - 03 - 09. Archived from the original on 2004 - 12 - 24. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. ^ Jump up to : Grey - Thompson, Tanni ( 2008 - 09 - 11 ). `` Cheating does happen in the Paralympics ''. The Daily Telegraph. London : Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ Van de Vliet, Peter ( 2009 - 12 - 15 ). `` Re-Inclusion of Athletes with Intellectual Impairment in Paralympic Sports '' ( PDF ). International Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on June 5, 2011. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ `` Paralympians can do the same thing as Olympic athletes - including cheating ''. Sports Illustrated. CNNSI.com. 2002 - 03 - 06. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ Maffly, Bryan ( 2002 - 03 - 13 ). `` Skier Fails Drug Test ''. Salt Lake 2002 Paralympics. Archived from the original on 2010 - 06 - 05. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 07. Jump up ^ Anti-Doping Rule Violation of Swedish Wheelchair Curler, International Paralympic Committee ( IPC ), May 4, 2010 Jump up ^ Davies, Gareth ( 2010 - 03 - 21 ). `` Winter Paralympics 2010 : Wheelchair curler 's positive drug test mars closing ceremony ''. The Telegraph. London : Telegraph Media Group Limited. Retrieved 2010 - 05 - 03. Jump up ^ Little, Lyndon ( 25010 - 03 - 19 ). `` Swedish wheelchair curler suspended for use of an illegal drug ''. The Vancouver Sun. Canwest Publishing Inc. Archived from the original on 2010 - 04 - 24. Retrieved 2010 - 05 - 03. Check date values in : date = ( help ) Jump up ^ France - Presse, Agence ( 2010 - 03 - 18 ). `` Cheating probed at paralympic games ''. The Ottawa Citizen. Canwest Publishing Inc. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 14. Jump up ^ Wolbring, G. ( 2008 ). Oscar Pistorius and the future nature of Olympic, Paralympic and other sports. SCRIPT - ed, 5 ( 1 ). doi : 10.2966 / scrip. 050108.139. Jump up ^ World Anti Doping Agency. ( October 2009 ). Gene Doping. In World Anti-Doping Agency. Retrieved April 11, 2012, from `` Archived copy ''. Archived from the original on 2009 - 11 - 21. Retrieved 2013 - 09 - 27... ^ Jump up to : World Anti-Doping Agency ( 2008 ). Beijing 2008. Play True. Retrieved April 13, 2012. From http://www.wada-ama.org/Documents/Resources/Publications/PlayTrue_Magazine/PlayTrue_2008_3_Levelling_the_Playing_Field_EN.pdf Jump up ^ `` Trischa Zorn - Hudson '' ( PDF ). USA Swimming. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 08. Jump up ^ `` Trischa Zorn ''. CNN. CNN.com. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 08. Jump up ^ `` 2002 Winter Paralympics ''. Disabled Sports USA. Archived from the original on April 27, 2003. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 97. Check date values in : access - date = ( help ) Jump up ^ `` Paralympic Games - Summer ''. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 15. Jump up ^ `` Paralympic Games - Winter ''. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 15. Jump up ^ `` Madrid 1992 -- the Paralympic Games that time forgot ! paralympicanorak ''. Paralympicanorak.wordpress.com. 2012 - 06 - 25. Retrieved 2012 - 10 - 13. References Cashman, Richard ; Darcy, Simon ( 2008 ). Benchmark Games : The Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games. Petersham, Australia : Walla Walla Press. ISBN 978 - 1 - 876718 - 05 - 3. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. DePauw, Karen P. ; Gavron, Susan J. ( 2005 ). Disability Sport. Champaign, United States : Human Kinetics. ISBN 0 - 7360 - 4638 - 0. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. Galligan, Frank ( 2000 ). Advanced PE for Edexcel. Oxford, United Kingdom : Heinemann Educational Publishers. ISBN 0 - 435 - 50643 - 9. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. Gilbert, Keith ; Schantz, Otto J. ( 2008 ). The Paralympic Games : Empowerment or Side Show ?. New York, United States : Meyer and Meyer Ltd. ISBN 978 - 1 - 84126 - 265 - 9. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. Goggin, Gerard ; Newell, Christopher ( 2003 ). Digital disability : the social construction of disability in new media. Oxford, United Kingdom : Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 0 - 7425 - 1844 - 2. Retrieved 2010 - 05 - 03. Howe, P. David ( 2008 ). The cultural politics of the paralympic movement. New York, United States : Routledge. ISBN 9780415288866. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 29. Further reading Peterson, Cynthia and Robert D. Steadward. Paralympics : Where Heroes Come, 1998, One Shot Holdings, ISBN 0 - 9682092 - 0 - 3. Thomas and Smith, Disability, Sport and Society, Routledge, 2008, ISBN 978 - 0 - 415 - 37819 - 2. External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : Paralympic Games Wikimedia Commons has media related to Paralympic Games. Official Website Paralympic Sport TV, web - TV channel of the International Paralympic Committee ( IPC ) Paralympic Games -- Facts and figures Keeping the momentum of the Paralympics Paralympic Games Charter Host cities IPC NPCs Medal tables Medalists Participating Nations Sports Symbols Summer Games Rome 1960 Tokyo 1964 Tel Aviv 1968 Heidelberg 1972 Toronto 1976 Arnhem 1980 New York / Stoke Mandeville 1984 Seoul 1988 Barcelona / Madrid 1992 Atlanta 1996 Sydney 2000 Athens 2004 Beijing 2008 London 2012 Rio de Janeiro 2016 Tokyo 2020 Paris 2024 Los Angeles 2028 Winter Games Örnsköldsvik 1976 Geilo 1980 Innsbruck 1984 Innsbruck 1988 Tignes / Albertville 1992 Lillehammer 1994 Nagano 1998 Salt Lake City 2002 Turin 2006 Vancouver 2010 Sochi 2014 Pyeongchang 2018 Beijing 2022 Olympic Games Youth Olympic Games Ancient Olympic Games Nations that have competed at the Paralympic Games Africa Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Comoros Congo DR Congo Djibouti Egypt Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea - Bissau Ivory Coast Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone South Africa Sudan Tanzania Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe Americas Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Bahamas Barbados Bermuda Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Costa Rica Cuba Dominican Republic Ecuador El Salvador Guatemala Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Nicaragua Panama Peru Puerto Rico Suriname Trinidad and Tobago United States Uruguay Venezuela Virgin Islands Asia Afghanistan Bahrain Bangladesh Brunei Cambodia China Hong Kong India Indonesia Iran Iraq Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Macau Malaysia Mongolia Myanmar Nepal North Korea Oman Pakistan Palestine Philippines Qatar Saudi Arabia Singapore South Korea Sri Lanka Syria Chinese Taipei Tajikistan Thailand Timor - Leste Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen Europe Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Faroe Islands Finland France Georgia Germany Great Britain Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Israel Italy Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Malta Moldova Montenegro Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Russia San Marino Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine Oceania Australia Winter Fiji New Zealand Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Tonga Vanuatu Other Independent Paralympic Participants Individual Paralympic Athletes Unified Team Historical Czechoslovakia East Germany Rhodesia Serbia and Montenegro Soviet Union Yugoslavia Israel has been a member of the European Paralympic Committees ( EOC ) since 1994. Multi-sport events Global Olympics Olympic Games Summer Winter Youth Olympic Games Disabled sports Deaflympics Défi sportif Invictus Games CPISRA World Games INAS Global Games IBSA World Games IWAS World Games World Dwarf Games Paralympic Games Summer Winter Special Olympics Summer Winter World Transplant Games Professions Lumberjack World Championship World Air Games World Martial Arts Games World Military Games World Police and Fire Games World Firefighters Games World Roller Games European Championship in Forestry Skills Southern Forestry Conclave Stihl Timbersports Series World Logging Championship Youth and students Gymnasiade International Children 's Games SELL Student Games Universiade World Interuniversity Games Commonwealth Youth Games Other types Arafura Games CSIT World Sports Games Dew Tour Mind Sports Olympiad World Mind Sports Games SportAccord World Mind Games TAFISA World Games World Combat Games World Games World Masters Games X Games World Beach Games Intercommunity Commonwealth Games CPLP Games Croatian World Games Gay Games Invictus Games Islamic Solidarity Games Jeux de la Francophonie Lusophony Games Maccabiah Games Pan Arab Games Pan-Armenian Games Transplant Games World Eskimo Indian Olympics World Indigenous Games World Nomad Games World Outgames Regional Africa African Youth Games African Games All - 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Question: who were the paralympic games initially meant for
Answer: athletes in wheelchairs