Paralympic Games

Template:Short description
Template:Further
Template:Paralympic Games sidebar
Template:Disability
The **Paralympic Games** or **Paralympics**, also known as the **Games of the Paralympiad**, is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics 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 began as a small gathering of British World War II veterans in 1948. The 1960 Games in Rome drew 400 athletes with disabilities from 23 countries, as proposed by doctor Antonio Maglio. As of the early 21st century, it is one of the largest international sporting events, with 4,520 athletes from 163 National Paralympic Committees at the 2020 Summer Paralympics. 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 and in a similar way to the Olympic Games. The IOC-recognized Special Olympics World Games include athletes with intellectual disabilities (although since 1992, intellectually disabled people also participate in the Paralympic Games), and the Deaflympics held since 1924 are exclusive for deaf athletes.

Given the wide variety of disabilities of Para athletes, there are several categories in which they compete. The allowable disabilities are divided into ten eligible impairment types: 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 divided into various subcategories.

## Host cities

**Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".**

Template:Note labelPostponed to 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, marking the first time that the Paralympic Games has been postponed. They are still called the 2020 Summer Paralympics, even with the change in scheduling to one year later. The Games were held from 24 August to 5 September 2021.

## See also

* Template:Portal-inline
* All-time Paralympic Games medal table
* Parapan American Games
* Asian Para Games
* Commonwealth Paraplegic Games
* Cybathlon
* Disability flag

## References

* Template:Cite book
* Template:Cite book
* Template:Cite book
* Template:Cite book
* Template:Cite book
* Template:Cite book

## Further reading

* Peterson, Cynthia and Robert D. Steadward. *Paralympics : Where Heroes Come*, 1998, One Shot Holdings, Template:ISBN.
* Thomas and Smith, *Disability, Sport and Society*, Routledge, 2008, Template:ISBN.

## External links

Template:Commons
Template:Wikiquote

* Official website
* Paralympic Sport TV, web-TV channel of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC)

Template:Nations at the Paralympics
Template:Multi-sport events
Template:Olympic Games
Template:Disability navbox
Template:Portal bar
Template:Authority control
Template:Good article

1. ↑ Template:Cite journal
2. ↑ Template:Cite web
3. ↑ The World Games for the Deaf and the Paralympic Games Template:Webarchive, International Committee of Sports for the Deaf (CISS), December 1996
4. ↑ Special Olympics and the Olympic Movement, Official website of the Special Olympics,1669
5. ↑ Template:Cite web
6. ↑ Template:Cite web
7. ↑ Template:Cite web
8. ↑ Template:Cite web
9. ↑ Template:Cite web
10. ↑ Template:Cite web
11. ↑ Template:Cite web
12. ↑ Template:Cite web
13. ↑ Template:Cite web
14. ↑ Template:Cite web
15. ↑ Template:Cite web
16. ↑ Template:Cite web
17. ↑ Template:Cite web
18. ↑ Template:Cite web
19. ↑ Template:Cite web
20. ↑ Template:Cite web
21. ↑ Template:Cite web
22. ↑ Template:Cite web
23. ↑ Template:Cite web
24. ↑ Template:Cite web
25. ↑ Template:Cite web
26. ↑ Template:Cite web
27. ↑ Template:Cite web
28. ↑ Template:Cite web
29. ↑ Template:Cite web
30. ↑ Template:Cite web
31. ↑ Template:Cite web
32. ↑ Template:Cite web
33. ↑ Template:Cite web
34. ↑ Template:Cite web
35. ↑ Template:Cite web
36. ↑ Template:Cite web
37. ↑ Template:Cite web
38. ↑ Template:Cite web
39. ↑ Template:Cite news