The Paralympics Games
The Olympic Games are thrilling, heart-breaking, uplifting – pretty much all around amazing! But did you know that there are two Olympic Games? The first games, happening in Vancouver as I write this, are the ones we have all seen, watched and been moved by. The results cover the news, the papers and the web. But I would love to draw a little light on the less-known Paralympic games, where some truly amazing and inspiring athletes are constantly pushing the limits of their physical and mental abilities.
The 2010 Paralympic Games start a week after the Olympics, and run from March 12th-21st – and just like the Olympics Games there will be some fantastic wins, and amazing sports stories.
In 1948, Sir Ludwig Guttmann organized a sports competition involving World War II veterans with a spinal cord injuries. Four years later, competitors from the Netherlands joined the games and an international movement was born. Today, the Paralympics are elite sport events for athletes with a disability. They emphasize, however, the participants’ athletic achievements rather than their disability.
There are five categories of games at the Paralympics: Alpine Skiing, Biathlon, Cross Country Skiing, Ice Sledge Hockey and Wheelchair Curling.
