Husam Azzam's is disabled from contracting polio as an infant and losing the use of both his legs. He has had to use a wheelchair since and is classified as F53. Azzam was 40 years old at the time of the Rio Paralympics, and it was his fifth time competing at the Summer Paralympic Games; he won a medal at each of the 2000 and the 2004 Summer Paralympics. He qualified for the Games by using a wild card because he had not competed in any internationally sanctioned qualifying tournament in the three years leading up to the Games. The Palestinian Paralympic Committee negotiated and explained to the sports' governing body, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), about Azzam's restrictions of movement due to the constant closures of the Rafah Border Crossing and the Erez Crossing by Israeli authorities, which prevented him from attending three international training camps. This restricted him to staying in the Gaza Strip preparing for the Games with corroded shot put metal balls and on a sandy playground that did not meet international standards.