View source for Paralympic Games

{{Short description|Major international sport event for people with disabilities}}
{{Further|IWAS World Games}}
{{Good article}}
{{Infobox sporting event organization
|name = Paralympic Games
|image = IPC logo (2019).svg
|image_upright =
|caption =
|abbreviation = 
|motto = 
|formation = '''Summer'''<br />[[Rome]], Italy in [[1960 Summer Paralympics|1960]]<br />'''Winter'''<br />[[Örnsköldsvik]], Sweden in [[1976 Winter Paralympics|1976]]
|recurrence = Four years, alternated two years during the four-year cycle
|headquarters = [[Bonn]], [[Germany]]
|leader_title = President
|leader_name = [[Andrew Parsons (sports administrator)|Andrew Parsons]]
|website =
|remarks =
}}
{{Paralympic Games sidebar}}
{{Disability|sports}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2025}}
The '''Paralympic Games''' or '''Paralympics''' is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of [[disability|disabilities]]. There are [[Winter Paralympic Games|Winter]] and [[Summer Paralympic Games]], which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in [[Seoul]], South Korea, have been held shortly after the corresponding [[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 [[Stoke Mandeville Games|1948]]. The [[1960 Summer Paralympics|1960 Games]] in Rome drew 400 athletes with disabilities from 23 countries, as proposed by doctor Antonio Maglio. Currently it is one of the largest international sporting events: the [[2020 Summer Paralympics]] featuring 4,520 athletes from 163 [[National Paralympic Committees]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Dehghansai|first1=Nima|last2=Lemez|first2=Srdjan |last3=Wattie|first3=Nick|last4=Baker|first4=Joseph|title=A Systematic Review of Influences on Development of Athletes With Disabilities|journal=Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly|date=January 2017|volume=34 |issue=1|pages=72–90|doi=10.1123/APAQ.2016-0030|pmid=28218871|doi-access=free}}</ref> Paralympians strive for equal treatment with non-disabled Olympic athletes, but there is a large funding gap between Olympic and Paralympic athletes.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Vritika|date=25 April 2017|title=Difference between Olympics and Paralympics|url=http://www.differencebetween.info/difference-between-olympics-and-paralympics|access-date=8 September 2021|website=www.differencebetween.info|url-status=live|archive-date=8 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210908134444/http://www.differencebetween.info/difference-between-olympics-and-paralympics}}</ref>{{Circular reporting|date=September 2024}}

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, people with intellectual disabilities also participate in the Paralympic Games), and the [[Deaflympics]] held since 1924 are exclusive for deaf athletes.<ref>[http://www.deaflympics.com/news.asp?1131 The World Games for the Deaf and the Paralympic Games] {{Webarchive |date=15 March 2014 |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315230640/http://www.deaflympics.com/news.asp?1131}}, [[International Committee of Sports for the Deaf]] (CISS), December 1996</ref><ref name=specialolympics>[https://web.archive.org/web/20111007041021/http://info.specialolympics.org/NR/rdonlyres/eygdoyu6qeskkk3pn56u5u62q2wo5alfxtsakkwc56svfiy3qzsgyukawqyplsdx2xxyphk24bx7nznqjvg7t4snyee/olympic_brochure.pdf Special Olympics and the Olympic Movement], Official website of the [[Special Olympics]],1669</ref>

Given the wide variety of disabilities of [[Parasports|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]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.paralympic.org/classification |title=Classification |website = Official website of the Paralympic Movement |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140316004832/http://www.paralympic.org/classification |archive-date=16 March 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref> These categories are further divided into various subcategories.

== Forerunners ==
[[File:RUSMARKA-1777.jpg|thumb|right|Sir [[Ludwig Guttmann]]]]

=== Athletes with disabilities at the Olympic Games ===
Athletes with disabilities did compete at the Olympic Games prior to the advent of the Paralympics. The first athlete to do so was [[German American|German-American]] gymnast [[George Eyser]] in [[1904 Summer Olympics|1904]], who had one artificial leg. [[Olivér Halassy]], a Hungarian amputee water polo player, competed in three successive Olympic Games, beginning in [[1928 Summer Olympics|1928]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=3 December 2016 |title=Olivér Halassy Bio, Stats, and Results {{!}} Olympics at Sports-Reference.com |url=http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/oliver-halassy-1.html |access-date=25 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203073110/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/oliver-halassy-1.html |archive-date=3 December 2016 }}</ref> [[Hungary at the 1948 Summer Olympics|Hungarian]] [[Károly Takács]] competed in shooting events in both the [[1948 Summer Olympics|1948]] and [[1952 Summer Olympics|1952]] Summer Olympics. He was a right-arm [[Amputation|amputee]] and could shoot left-handed. Another athlete with a disability who appeared in the Olympics prior to the Paralympic Games was [[Lis Hartel]], a [[Denmark at the 1952 Summer Olympics|Danish]] equestrian athlete who had contracted polio in 1943 and won a silver medal in the [[Equestrian at the 1952 Summer Olympics|dressage]] event in the [[1952 Summer Olympics]].<ref>DePauw and Gavron (2005), p. 38</ref>

=== Stoke Mandeville Games ===
The first organized athletic event for athletes with disabilities that coincided with the Olympic Games took place on the day of the opening of the [[1948 Summer Olympics]] in London. The [[German Jews|German-Jewish]] doctor [[Ludwig Guttmann]], of [[Stoke Mandeville Hospital]],<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.accessibleportugal.com/revista/2008/Setembro/capa1.html | title=Paralympics History | author=Correia, Susana | work=Accessible Portugal Online Magazine | date=February 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206205816/http://www.accessibleportugal.com/revista/2008/Setembro/capa1.html | archive-date=6 February 2009}}</ref> who had fled [[Nazi Germany]] with the help of the [[Council for Assisting Refugee Academics]] (CARA) in 1939,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rsl.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwmss/wmss/online/modern/spsl/spsl.html#spsl.A |title=SPSL Archive |publisher=Rsl.ox.ac.uk |date=24 December 1933 |access-date=17 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120828224203/http://www.rsl.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwmss/wmss/online/modern/spsl/spsl.html#spsl.A |archive-date=28 August 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> hosted a sports competition for British World War II veteran patients with spinal cord injuries. The first games were called the [[World Wheelchair and Amputee Games|1948 International Wheelchair Games]], and were intended to coincide with the 1948 Olympics.<ref name=history>{{cite web|title=History of the Paralympic Movement |publisher=Canadian Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympiceducation.ca/Content/History/11%20History%20of%20the%20Paralympics.asp?langid=1 |access-date=7 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090802152653/http://www.paralympiceducation.ca/Content/History/11%20History%20of%20the%20Paralympics.asp?langid=1 |archive-date=2 August 2009 }}</ref> 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 at the same location each year, and in 1952 Dutch and Israeli veterans took part alongside the British, making it the first international competition of its own kind. In 1960, the 9th annual games took place outside of the UK for the first time in [[Rome]], to coincide with the [[1960 Summer Olympics]] which were also being held in Rome. These were to be later designated the [[1960 Summer Paralympics|1st Paralympic Games]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Rome 1960 |url=https://www.paralympic.org/rome-1960 |access-date=25 February 2023 |website=International Paralympic Committee |language=en}}</ref>

These early competitions have been described as the precursors of the Paralympic Games, and Stoke Mandeville holds a similar place in the history of the Paralympic movement as Greece holds in the Olympic Games; since 2012, the Paralympic flame has incorporated a "heritage flame" lit at Stoke Mandeville, although it was combined with flames lit in the host country for the formal start of the torch relay. Beginning in [[2024 Summer Paralympics|2024]], future Paralympic torch relays will officially begin in Stoke Mandeville, as an equivalent to the Olympic flame being created in [[Olympia, Greece|Olympia]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=6 October 2023 |title=Stoke Mandeville revealed as permanent home of Paralympic flame |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-67020029 |access-date=24 March 2024 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=6 October 2023 |title=Stoke Mandeville to stage first standalone Paralympic Flame Lighting Ceremony |url=https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1141463/stoke-mandeville-paralympic-flame |access-date=24 March 2024 |website=www.insidethegames.biz}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Paralympic Flame to be created at Stoke Mandeville for all future Paralympic Games |url=https://www.paralympic.org/news/paralympic-flame-be-created-stoke-mandeville-all-future-paralympic-games |access-date=24 March 2024 |website=International Paralympic Committee |language=en}}</ref>

==Milestones==
{{Further|Chronology of the Paralympic Movement}}
There have been several milestones in the Paralympic movement. The first official Paralympic Games, coincident with the ninth [[Stoke Mandeville Games]] but no longer open solely to war veterans, was held in Rome in [[1960 Summer Paralympics|1960]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Paralympics traces roots to Second World War|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Centre|url=http://www.cbc.ca/sports/2.720/paralympics-traces-roots-to-second-world-war-1.697123|access-date=14 April 2010|date=5 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140319072816/http://www.cbc.ca/sports/2.720/paralympics-traces-roots-to-second-world-war-1.697123|archive-date=19 March 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> They were the brainchild of Antonio Maglio, a friend and follower of Guttmann and were financed almost entirely by Maglio's employer, the Workers National Accident Insurance Fund of Italy, then led by [[Renato Morelli]], who was also Chairman of the International Social Security Association.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cerimonia allo stadio dell'Acqua Acetosa: nasce una nuova dimensione dello sport |url=https://www.coni.it/it/attivita-istituzionali/promozione-sportiva/giornata-nazionale-dello-sport/36-primo-piano/17290-inizia-l%E2%80%99olimpiade-che-affascin%C3%B2-il-mondo-il-miracolo-germania-e-la-protesta-di-taiwan.html |access-date=15 January 2023 |website=www.coni.it}}</ref> Four hundred 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.<ref name="winter history" /><ref>Galligan (2000), pp. 89–90</ref> The Games were initially open only to athletes in wheelchairs; at the [[1976 Summer Paralympics|1976 Summer Games]], athletes with different disabilities were included for the first time at a Summer Paralympics.<ref name=history/> With the inclusion of more disability classifications the 1976 Summer Games expanded to 1,600 athletes from 40 countries.<ref name="winter history" /> 

The [[1988 Summer Paralympics]] in [[Seoul]] was another milestone for the Paralympic movement. It was in Seoul that the Paralympic Summer Games were held directly after the [[1988 Summer Olympics]], in the same host city, and using the majority of the venues. This set a precedent that was followed in [[1992 Summer Paralympics|1992]], [[1996 Summer Paralympics|1996]] and [[2000 Summer Paralympics|2000]]. It was eventually formalized in an agreement between the [[International Paralympic Committee]] (IPC) and the [[International Olympic Committee]] (IOC) in 2001,<ref name="winter history" /><ref>DePauw and Gavron (2005) p. 92</ref> and was extended through 2020.<ref name=bbc-firstglobal>{{cite news|title=Paralympics 2012: London to host 'first truly global Games'|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/disability-sport/18143145|publisher=BBC Sport|access-date=1 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120818202303/http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/disability-sport/18143145|archive-date=18 August 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> On 10 March 2018, the two committees further extended their contract to 2032.<ref name=ioc-ipc-extendcontract>{{cite web|title=IOC and IPC to partner until 2032 |url=https://www.olympic.org/news/ioc-and-ipc-to-partner-until-2032|publisher=Olympics|access-date=10 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311072342/https://www.olympic.org/news/ioc-and-ipc-to-partner-until-2032 |archive-date=11 March 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Despite being held in the same region, the [[1992 Winter Paralympics]] used different competition venues than those used for the Olympic Games. [[1994 Winter Paralympics]] were the first Winter Games to use the same venues and had the same Organizing Committee as the [[1994 Winter Olympics|Winter Olympics]].

==Winter Games==
{{Main|Winter Paralympic Games}}
The first Winter Paralympic Games were held in [[1976 Winter Paralympics|1976]] in [[Örnsköldsvik]], Sweden. This was the first Paralympics in which multiple categories of athletes with disabilities could compete.<ref name="winter history">{{cite web|title=History of the Paralympic Games|publisher=Government of Canada|url=http://www.canada2010.gc.ca/101/histor/010203-eng.cfm|access-date=7 April 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100312224915/http://www.canada2010.gc.ca/101/histor/010203-eng.cfm|archive-date=12 March 2010}}</ref> 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 through the [[1992 Winter Paralympics|1992 Games]] in [[Albertville]], France; after that, beginning with the [[1994 Winter Paralympics|1994 Games]], the Winter Paralympics and the [[Winter Olympics]] have been held in those even-numbered years separate from the Summer Olympics. The winter games happen two years after the summer games.<ref name="winter history" />

==International Paralympic Committee==
[[File:Germany Bonn IPC 2009 06 28.jpg|thumb|left|alt=A white building with trees next to it fronting a street with a car driving past|IPC headquarters in [[Bonn]]]]
[[File:Paralympics logo 1988-94.svg|thumb|The first Paralympic symbol (1988–1994) used five ''pa''.]]
The [[International Paralympic Committee]] is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement. It comprises 178<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web|title=National Paralympic Committees |url=http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/national-paralympic-committees|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|access-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215132032/https://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/national-paralympic-committees|archive-date=15 December 2018}}</ref> [[National Paralympic Committee]]s (NPC) and four disability-specific international sports federations.<ref>{{cite web|title=International Organisations of Sports for the Disabled|url=http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/international-organization-for-the-disabled |publisher=International Paralympic Committee|access-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live|archive-date=11 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170711204741/https://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/international-organization-for-the-disabled}}</ref> The president of the IPC is [[Andrew Parsons (sports administrator)|Andrew Parsons]]. The IPC's international headquarters are in [[Bonn]], Germany.<ref>{{cite web|title=IPC Management team|publisher=International Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/management-team|access-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181130142344/https://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/management-team |archive-date=30 November 2018}}</ref> 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 archery]], [[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.<ref name="aboutipc"/> 

IPC membership also includes National Paralympic Committees<ref name="ReferenceA"/> and international sporting federations.<ref>{{cite web|title=International Sport Federations|url=http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/international-sport-federations|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|access-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181130150316/https://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/international-sport-federations|archive-date=30 November 2018}}</ref> International Federations are independent sport federations recognized by the [[International Paralympic Committee|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]].<ref name="movement">{{cite web|title=IPC Handbook |publisher=International Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/IPC_Handbook/ |access-date=29 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100421005428/http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/IPC_Handbook/ |archive-date=21 April 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Since its creation in 1989, 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.<ref>Gilbert and Schantz (2008) p. 170</ref>
{{Clear}}

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.<ref name="aboutipc">{{cite web|url=http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/about-us|title=About the IPC|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|access-date=6 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224220800/http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/about-us|archive-date=24 December 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> 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 4,342 athletes from 159 countries in Rio de Janeiro in [[2016 Summer Paralympics|2016]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Paralympic Games|newspaper=International Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games|access-date=7 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928033406/http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games|archive-date=28 September 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> Both the Paralympic Summer and Winter Games are recognized on the world stage.

Unlike the Olympic Games, English is the official language of the Paralympic movement. The other languages used at each Paralympic Games are the official languages of the host country or host region. Every proclamation (such as the announcement of each country during the parade of nations in the opening ceremony) is spoken in these two or more languages.

==Name and symbols==
{{Main|Paralympic symbols}}
[[File:Paralympic flag (2019 10).svg|thumb|right|alt=A flag with three red, green, and blue swooshes on a white background. It is attached to a flagpole and is framed by a blue sky|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'',<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Paralympics |title=Definition of PARALYMPICS |access-date=28 August 2021 |archive-date=28 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210828123944/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Paralympics |url-status=live }}</ref> 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 {{Lang|el|παρά}}, {{Lang|el-latn|pará}} ('beside' or 'alongside') and thus refers to a competition held in parallel with the [[Olympic Games]].<ref name="HistoryofIPC">{{cite web|url=http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/history-of-the-movement |title=History of the Movement|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|access-date=4 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103065127/http://www.paralympic.org/the-ipc/history-of-the-movement|archive-date=3 January 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[1988 Summer Paralympics|Summer Games of 1988]] held in Seoul was the first time the term ''Paralympic'' came into official use.

"Spirit in Motion" is the current motto for the Paralympic movement. The current Paralympic flag is used since 2020 and 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/I shake/I stir'), 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.<ref>{{cite web|title=Paralympic Symbol & Motto|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|url=http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/Paralympic_Symbol_Motto.html|access-date=7 April 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091006082850/http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/Paralympic_Symbol_Motto.html | archive-date=6 October 2009}}</ref> 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."<ref>Howe (2008), p. 59</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web|title=IPC Intellectual Property Rights |publisher=International Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympic.org/export/sites/default/IPC/IPC_Handbook/Section_1/2010_03_10_Intellectual_Property_Bylaws_GB_Approved.pdf |access-date=3 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619214303/http://paralympic.org/export/sites/default/IPC/IPC_Handbook/Section_1/2010_03_10_Intellectual_Property_Bylaws_GB_Approved.pdf |archive-date=19 June 2010 }}</ref>

==Ceremonies==
===Opening===
[[File:Paralympics Opening Ceremony.jpg|thumb|left|alt=A portion of the stadium with stands full of people, a large artificial tree is on the right side of the image. A group of people are walking together on the stadium floor|Opening ceremony of the [[2004 Summer Paralympics]] in Athens]]
As mandated by the Paralympic Charter, various elements frame the opening ceremonies of the Paralympic Games. Most of these rituals were established are the same that [[1920 Summer Olympics]] in Antwerp and were shared with the [[Olympic Games]].<ref name=OCprotocol1>{{cite web |title=The Modern Olympic Games |publisher=International Olympic Committee |page=5 |url= http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Reports/EN/en_report_668.pdf |archive-date=15 April 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150415035028/http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Reports/EN/en_report_668.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> The Opening ceremony typically starts with the hoisting of the host country's flag and a performance of its national anthem. Immediately after the welcome act and the host country anthem and hosting their flag the "Parade of Nations" starts with the athletes into the stadium grouped by nation. Since the [[1960 Summer Paralympics]], the nations enter the stadium alphabetically according to the host country's or region official language, though with the host country's athletes being the last to enter. Beginning with the 2020 Summer Paralympics, the succeeding hosts of the respective Olympic Games (summer or winter) will enter immediately before the current host in descending order. The host nation presents artistic displays of their culture and folklore.

Protocolary segments are held with the speeches given, formally opening the games. After the opening declaration, the Paralympic flag enters the stadium and is hosted along with the Paralympic Anthem, aside from the host country flag, and the oaths by athletes, coaches, and judges are taken. Finally, the Paralympic flame 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.<ref>{{cite web |title=Paralympic opening ceremony to be 'family friendly' |publisher=Canwest News Service |work=The Vancouver Sun |date=12 March 2010 |url=https://vancouversun.com/health/Paralympic+opening+ceremony+family+friendly/2676023/story.html |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100317140459/http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Paralympic%2Bopening%2Bceremony%2Bfamily%2Bfriendly/2676023/story.html |archive-date=17 March 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===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.<ref>[https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:gYE3_zHFNG4J:www.paralympic.org/export/sites/default/IPC/IPC_Handbook/Section_1/2009_11_20_Intellectual_Property_Bylaws_GB_approved.pdf+IPC+Handbook+June+2009+Bylaws+Governance+and+Organizational+and+Organizational+Structure,&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiWjg41x66Augn939CIag30vfielmgvqkGvzutyt2JY14aQsNRFV8bL4vbCOx4T2bc2BbDPuMHJgrbh3qy0H3lYiiR6PGTtQe9R58CERqilz0voxEZ72xzSyyLEydWvz8fngwQI IPC Handbook June 2009 Bylaws Governance and Organizational and Organizational Structure] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210824094356/https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache%3AgYE3_zHFNG4J%3Awww.paralympic.org%2Fexport%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2FIPC%2FIPC_Handbook%2FSection_1%2F2009_11_20_Intellectual_Property_Bylaws_GB_approved.pdf+IPC+Handbook+June+2009+Bylaws+Governance+and+Organizational+and+Organizational+Structure%2C&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiWjg41x66Augn939CIag30vfielmgvqkGvzutyt2JY14aQsNRFV8bL4vbCOx4T2bc2BbDPuMHJgrbh3qy0H3lYiiR6PGTtQe9R58CERqilz0voxEZ72xzSyyLEydWvz8fngwQI |date=24 August 2021 }} (Google Quick View), [[International Paralympic Committee]] (IPC)</ref> After these compulsory elements, the next host nation briefly introduces itself with artistic displays of dance and theater representative of its culture.

===Medal presentation===
[[Image:2010 Winter Paralympics Men's Biathlon pursuit vi medalists.jpg|thumb|alt=six men stand together wearing Paralympic medals and waving flower bouquets|A medal ceremony during the 2010 Winter Paralympics]]
A medals ceremony is held after the conclusion of each Paralympic event. The winner, second and third-place competitors or teams stand on top of a three-tiered rostrum when they are awarded their respective medal by an IPC member. The national flags of the medalists are then raised while the [[national anthem]] of the gold medalist is played.<ref>[http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-news/n/news/victory-ceremony-podiums-at-2010-winter-games-a-testament--to-the-mountains-athletes-have-climbed-en-route-to-olympic-and-paralympic-success_264996fr.html 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 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100410053925/http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-news/n/news/victory-ceremony-podiums-at-2010-winter-games-a-testament--to-the-mountains-athletes-have-climbed-en-route-to-olympic-and-paralympic-success_264996fr.html |date=10 April 2010 }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ceremony volunteers|publisher=Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games|url= http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/work-and-volunteer/volunteer-opportunities/ceremonies-volunteers/ |access-date=4 May 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100527154709/http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/work-and-volunteer/volunteer-opportunities/ceremonies-volunteers/|archive-date=27 May 2010|url-status=live}}</ref> 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 June 2001, the [[International Olympic Committee]] (IOC) and the [[International Paralympic Committee]] (IPC) signed an agreement that would ensure that the staging of the Paralympic Games is automatically included in the bid for the [[Olympic Games]].<ref name=autogenerated2>[http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/IPC-IOC_Co-operation.html IPC-IOC Co-operation] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090908052424/http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/IPC-IOC_Co-operation.html |date=8 September 2009 }}, The official website of the [[International Paralympic Committee]]</ref> The agreement was set to take effect at the [[2008 Paralympic Summer Games]] in Beijing and the [[2010 Paralympic Winter Games]] in Vancouver. However, the [[Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games of 2002|Salt Lake 2002 Organizing Committee]] (SLOC) chose to follow the practice of "one bid, one city", with one [[Organizing Committees for the Olympic Games|Organizing Committee]] for both Games, which was followed up by the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. The agreement was adjusted in 2003. An extension was signed in June 2006, after some troubles at the [[2006 Winter Paralympics]].<ref name=autogenerated2 /> Initially agreed to remain in effect until the 2012 Summer Olympics,<ref name="winter history" /> this was later extended to encompass all Summer and Winter games up until the 2020 Summer Olympics.<ref name=agreement>{{cite web|title=IPC-IOC Cooperation|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|url=http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/IPC-IOC_Co-operation.html |access-date=3 May 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090908052424/http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/IPC-IOC_Co-operation.html | archive-date=8 September 2009}}</ref><ref name="agreement2020">{{cite web|title=IOC and IPC Extend Co-operation Agreement Until 2020|url=https://www.paralympic.org/news/ioc-and-ipc-extend-co-operation-agreement-until-2020|website=paralympic.org|access-date=9 March 2018|date=9 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310090023/https://www.paralympic.org/news/ioc-and-ipc-extend-co-operation-agreement-until-2020|archive-date=10 March 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Even beyond this, all Summer and Winter host cities {{As of|2024|8|11|alt=currently}} announced are preparing pairs of Olympic and Paralympics Games. This was further confirmed when on 10 March 2018, the IOC and the IPC agreed to further extend the contract to the 2032 Summer Olympics.<ref name="ioc-ipc-extendcontract"/>

The IOC has written its commitment to equal access to athletics for all people into its [[Olympic Charter|charter]], which states,<ref>{{cite web|title=The Olympic Charter|publisher=International Olympic Committee|page=11|year=2010|url=http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Olympic%20Charter/Charter_en_2010.pdf|access-date=29 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110505101457/http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Olympic%20Charter/Charter_en_2010.pdf|archive-date=5 May 2011|url-status=live}}</ref>{{blockquote|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.<ref>Gilbert and Schantz (2008) p. 169</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web|title=Paralympic Vision and Mission|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|year=2003|url=http://www.paralympic.org/sites/default/files/document/120203111830492_sec_i_chapter_1.1_paralympic_vision_and_mission_0.pdf|access-date=29 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120605195759/http://paralympic.org/sites/default/files/document/120203111830492_Sec_i_chapter_1.1_Paralympic_Vision_and_Mission_0.pdf|archive-date=5 June 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

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."<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/may/04/sainsburys-sponsors-paralympic-games | location=London | title=Sainsbury's announces sponsorship of 2012 Paralympics | date=4 May 2010 | work=The Guardian | first=Owen | last=Gibson | access-date=12 December 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161201174103/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/may/04/sainsburys-sponsors-paralympic-games | archive-date=1 December 2016 | url-status=live }}</ref>

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 [[Russia at the 2010 Winter Paralympics|Paralympic team]] topped the medal table at the [[2010 Winter Paralympics|Winter Paralympics]], while their [[Russia at the 2010 Winter Olympics|Olympic team]] performed well below expectations at the [[2010 Winter Olympics|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.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/disabled-athletes-show-up-olympics-team/402021.html|title=Disabled Athletes Show Up Olympics Team|newspaper=[[Moscow Times]]|date=18 March 2010|access-date=11 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140311211115/http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/disabled-athletes-show-up-olympics-team/402021.html|archive-date=11 March 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> The Russian Federation organizers of the 2014 Winter Paralympic Games have, since 2007, made efforts to make the host city Sochi more accessible.<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite news | url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/sochi-paralympics-confronts-russia-s-attitude-towards-disabled-1.2558404 | work=CBC News | title=Sochi Paralympics confronts Russia's attitude towards disabled – World – CBC News | access-date=11 March 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140311083748/http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/sochi-paralympics-confronts-russia-s-attitude-towards-disabled-1.2558404 | archive-date=11 March 2014 | url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2012, as part of its prohibition on unauthorised advertising, the Paralympic movement began requiring any tattoo of the [[Olympic rings]] to be covered during competition, on the basis that the Olympics is technically a third-party organisation. In 2024 the prohibition was ended after protests from athletes.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cacciola |first1=Scott |title=Paralympics Will Drop Ban on Olympic Rings Tattoos |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/23/style/paralympics-olympic-rings-tattoo-ban.html |access-date=23 August 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=23 August 2024}}</ref>

====Paralympians at the Olympics====
{{See also|List of athletes who have competed in the Paralympics and Olympics}}
[[Image:Oscar Pistorius-2.jpg|thumb|alt=A man in a spandex singlet runs on a track. He has two prosthetics below the knees|upright|[[Oscar Pistorius]] at a track meet on 8 July 2007]]
[[Paralympian|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 at the Paralympics|New Zealand]], who competed at the [[1984 Summer Olympics]] in Los Angeles.<ref name="NYTimes.com">{{Cite news|title=Neroli Fairhall, Champion Archer, Dies at 61|work=The New York Times|date=13 June 2006|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/13/sports/13fairhall.html|access-date=7 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130522014516/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/13/sports/13fairhall.html|archive-date=22 May 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>
In 2008, [[Oscar Pistorius]], a [[South Africa at the Paralympics|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 [[Össur]]. He holds the Paralympic world record in the 400&nbsp;meter event.<ref>{{cite web|title=World Para Athletics Records|url=http://www.paralympic.org/world-records/athletics|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|access-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181129195544/https://www.paralympic.org/world-records/athletics|archive-date=29 November 2018}}</ref> Pistorius missed qualifying for the [[2008 Summer Olympics]] in the 400&nbsp;meter race, by 0.70&nbsp;seconds. He qualified for the [[2008 Summer Paralympics]] where he won gold medals in the 100, 200, and 400&nbsp;meter sprints.<ref>{{Cite news|title=An Amputee Sprinter: Is He Disabled to Too-Abled|last=Longman|first=Jere|work=The New York Times|date=15 May 2007|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/15/sports/othersports/15runner.html|access-date=8 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090410223905/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/15/sports/othersports/15runner.html|archive-date=10 April 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> 

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.<ref>{{citation|title=Paralympics 100m: Oscar Pistorius says past experience vital|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/disability-sport/18146074|publisher=BBC Sport|date=21 May 2012|access-date=11 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016113752/http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/disability-sport/18146074|archive-date=16 October 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Even though all athletes are given equal opportunities to participate in these events, such as the 400-meter race, there has been growing criticism that the games may not be fair to all athletes. For example, athletes running a race with a left prosthetic leg may be disadvantaged compared to those with a right side prosthesis because the races are run in an anticlockwise direction, giving some athletes an advantage.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=24 March 2016|title=Biomechanics: Right prosthetic legs have the edge|journal=Nature|volume=531|issue=7595|pages=417|doi=10.1038/531417d|bibcode=2016Natur.531T.417.|issn=0028-0836|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Some athletes without a disability also compete at the Paralympics. The [[sighted guide]]s 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.<ref name="thestar.com">[https://www.thestar.com/sports/olympics/2010/03/13/visually_impaired_skiers_put_fate_in_guides_hands.html Visually impaired skiers put fate in guide's hands] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313181531/https://www.thestar.com/sports/olympics/2010/03/13/visually_impaired_skiers_put_fate_in_guides_hands.html |date=13 March 2017 }}, thestar.com, 13 March 2010</ref>

====Funding====
Starting at the 1992 Summer Paralympics, recent games 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.<ref name=paralympic-twists>{{cite news|last=Gibson|first=Owen|title=Paralympics reignite the Olympic buzz but with added twists|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/aug/30/london-paralympics-olympics-differences-similiarities|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=31 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315233321/http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/aug/30/london-paralympics-olympics-differences-similiarities|archive-date=15 March 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Media coverage===
While the Olympic Games have experienced tremendous growth in global media coverage since the [[1984 Summer Paralympics]], the Paralympics had been slower to develop a consistent mainstream media presence. In June 2023, IPC executives noted that interest in the Paralympics had been improving among broadcasters, citing that it had already reached rights deals for the [[2024 Summer Paralympics]] covering 75% of the world over a year in advance (in comparison to [[2020 Summer Paralympics|2020]], where many deals were made "last minute"), and that it had been pushing for broader coverage and increased rights fees since broadcasters were starting to "[realize] that [the Paralympics are] actually a great sporting event", and not treat them as a low-effort obligation bundled with their Olympics rights. Unlike the Olympics, the IPC holds the digital rights to the Paralympics in some markets, allowing it to promote live coverage and other highlights via its own social media platforms to [[Engagement marketing|engage]] online audiences.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=McLean |first=Heather |date=26 June 2023 |title=Paris 2024: The IPC on making the Paralympic Games the best ever while changing culture and attitudes towards disability |url=https://www.svgeurope.org/blog/headlines/paris-2024-the-ipc-on-making-the-paralympic-games-the-best-ever-while-changing-culture-and-attitudes-towards-disability/ |access-date=12 September 2024 |website=SVG Europe |language=en}}</ref>

Television broadcasts of Paralympic Games began in 1976, but this early coverage was confined to tape-delayed broadcasts to one nation or region. At the 1992 Summer Paralympics, there were 45&nbsp;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&nbsp;million people.<ref>Cashman and Darcy (2008), pp. 100–101</ref> Also significant was the fact that the organizers did not have to [[Brokered programming|pay networks]] to televise the Games as had been done at the [[1992 Summer Paralympics|1992]] and [[1996 Summer Paralympics|1996]] Games.<ref>Goggin and Newell (2003), p. 91</ref> 

Despite these advances, consistent media attention has been a challenge, which was evidenced in the coverage in Great Britain of the [[2010 Winter Paralympics]]. 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.<ref name=bbcmedia>{{Cite news|title=BBC criticised for scant coverage of Winter Paralympics|last=Sweney|first=Mark|work=The Guardian|date=12 March 2010|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/mar/12/bbc-criticised-coverage-winter-paralympics|access-date=30 April 2010|location=London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140228181719/http://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/mar/12/bbc-criticised-coverage-winter-paralympics|archive-date=28 February 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> 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.<ref name=bbcmedia/> 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 [[European Broadcasting Union|EBU]] of issues such as the [[Paralympic biathlon|biathlon]] coverage excluding the shooting, and [[Paralympic cross-country skiing|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.<ref>[http://www.adressa.no/sport/article1462582.ece Oppgitt over elendig Paralympics-produksjon] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140412041111/http://www.adressa.no/sport/article1462582.ece |date=12 April 2014 }} (Norwegian), [[Harstad Tidende]], 25 March 2010</ref> 

Not all Paralympic events have received television coverage; the IPC and its organisers currently contract with the IOC's media unit [[Olympic Broadcasting Services]] (OBS) to produce the broadcast feeds for the Paralympics. At the Summer Paralympics, coverage was limited to 16 sports in 2016, but increased to 19 sports in 2020. In 2024, all 22 Summer Paralympic sports were televised for the first time.<ref name=":0" />

In the UK, [[Channel 4]] assumed the television rights beginning in the [[2012 Summer Paralympics]], promising major increases in coverage on television and digital platforms, efforts to heighten the Games' profile, and commitments to incorporate people with disabilities among its staff and presenters.<ref name="bbc-c4paralympics">{{cite news |date=8 January 2010 |title=Channel 4 lands 2012 Paralympics |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/olympic_games/london_2012/8448236.stm |access-date=4 October 2013 |work=BBC Sport}}</ref><ref name="bnow-c4paralympics">{{cite web |title=C4 opens Paralympic tender process |url=http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/c4-opens-paralympic-tender-process/5064735.article |access-date=8 February 2014 |work=Broadcast Now}}</ref> Its coverage of the Paralympics have been promoted through major marketing campaigns; several of its advertisements have won [[Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity|Cannes Lions]] awards, with its trailer for 2016 "[[We're the Superhumans]]" receiving an overall Grand Prix award.<ref>{{cite news |last=Sweney |first=Mark |date=22 June 2013 |title=Cannes Lions: Dumb Ways to Die scoops top award |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/jun/22/cannes-lions-advertising-awards |access-date=23 June 2013 |work=[[The Guardian]] |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=24 June 2017 |title='We're the Superhumans' Wins Film Grand Prix at Cannes to Massive Applause |url=https://www.adweek.com/creativity/were-the-superhumans-wins-film-grand-prix-at-cannes-to-massive-applause/ |access-date=22 February 2019 |website=Adweek |language=en-US}}</ref> In January 2020, the Paralympics were classified as a [[Ofcom Code on Sports and Other Listed and Designated Events|Category A "listed" event]] by the British telecom regulator [[Ofcom]] as with the Olympics, mandating that they be broadcast in whole or in part by a free-to-air network, as with the Olympics.<ref>{{cite news |date=29 January 2020 |title=Ashes, Open and Champions League final 'not set for UK 'crown jewels' list' |url=https://www.sportbusiness.com/news/ashes-open-and-champions-league-final-not-set-for-uk-crown-jewels-list/ |work=SportBusiness}}</ref> Channel 4 reported that its coverage of the [[2024 Summer Paralympics]] was seen by a total audience of 20 million, with the channel achieving its highest viewer share since the 2012 Paralympics.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 September 2024 |title=Channel 4 Paralympics watched by 20m |url=https://advanced-television.com/2024/09/11/channel-4-paralympics-watched-by-20m/ |access-date=12 September 2024 |website=Advanced Television |language=en-GB}}</ref>

===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 to 50 percent believed the [[2010 Winter Paralympics|2010 Paralympic]] and [[2010 Winter Olympics|Olympic Games]] in Vancouver, British Columbia, 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.<ref>[http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/2010/03/04/paralympics-a-force-for-change/ Paralympics a force for change] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100511214805/http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/2010/03/04/paralympics-a-force-for-change/ |date=11 May 2010 }}, [[University of British Columbia]], 4 March 2010</ref>

chief executive officer for the International Paralympic Committee Xavier Gonzalez said about the [[2008 Summer Paralympics]] in Beijing, China, that:{{blockquote|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.<ref>[http://www.cp24.com/2010-paralympics-about-changing-minds-not-capturing-hearts-1.491717 2010 Paralympics about changing minds, not capturing hearts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140308182417/http://www.cp24.com/2010-paralympics-about-changing-minds-not-capturing-hearts-1.491717 |date=2014-03-08 }}, [[CablePulse 24]], 12 March 2010</ref>}}

===Down syndrome participation===

Within the framework of the International Olympic Committee's commitment to equal access to athletics, concerns have been raised regarding inclusion of athletes with [[Down syndrome]] in the Paralympic Games. While the Paralympic movement strives for inclusivity, the absence of a specific classification for athletes with Down syndrome within Paralympic swimming events raises questions about equal and fair competition for Down syndrome athletes.

[[International Paralympic Committee]] [[Para-swimming classification]] codes are based upon single impairment only, whereas Down syndrome individuals have both physical and intellectual impairments. Although swimmers with Down syndrome are able to compete in the [[S14 (classification)|S14]] intellectual impairment category (provided they score low in IQ tests), they are often outmatched by the superior physicality of their opponents.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1117707/ipc-athletes-downs-syndrome-paralympics|title=IPC urged to allow greater numbers of athletes with Down's syndrome to compete at Paralympics|publisher=Insidethegames.biz|author=Liam Morgan|date=12 January 2022|access-date=2 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/other-sports/paralympics-calls-down-syndrome-category-28545992|title=Paralympics faces calls for Down's syndrome category to ensure level playing field|publisher=Mirror|author=Liam Llewellyn|date=21 November 2022|access-date=10 February 2024}}</ref> At present there is no designated Paralympic category for swimmers with Down syndrome, meaning they have to compete as intellectually disadvantaged athletes. This disregards their physical disabilities.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mashable.com/article/down-syndrome-athletes-paralympics|title=Athletes with Down syndrome fight for inclusion at the Paralympics|publisher=Mashable.com|author=Ariel Bogle|date=29 August 2016|access-date=2 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.skysports.com/more-sports/olympics/news/29177/12563240/paralympic-dream-for-british-down-syndrome-swimmers-at-first-national-championships|title=Paralympic dream for British Down syndrome swimmers at first national championships|publisher=Sky Sports|author=Rebecca Williams|date=11 March 2022|access-date=2 March 2024}}</ref>

A number of advocacy groups globally have been lobbying for the inclusion of a distinct classification category for Down syndrome swimmers within the IPC Classification Codes framework.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.portugalresident.com/special21-celebrates-world-down-syndrome-day-in-albufeira/|title=Special21 celebrates World Down Syndrome Day in Albufeira|publisher=Portugal Resident|date=25 March 2022|access-date=2 March 2024|archive-date=2 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240302211052/https://www.portugalresident.com/special21-celebrates-world-down-syndrome-day-in-albufeira/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Initiatives aimed at promoting greater inclusivity within the Paralympic movement have emerged, including advocacy and awareness-raising efforts targeting discrimination and ensuring equal opportunities for athletes with Down syndrome.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.portugalresident.com/new-push-to-make-downs-syndrome-swimmers-eligible-for-paralympics/|title=New push to make Down's syndrome swimmers eligible for Paralympics|publisher=Portugal Resident|author=Michael Bruxo|date=14 December 2021|access-date=2 March 2024|archive-date=2 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240302220949/https://www.portugalresident.com/new-push-to-make-downs-syndrome-swimmers-eligible-for-paralympics/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Despite ongoing advocacy, the issue remains unresolved, and swimmers with Down syndrome continue to face challenges in accessing appropriate classification pathways.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dsiso.org/paralympics-participation-swimmers-with-down-syndrome/|title=Paralympics Participation swimmers with Down syndrome|publisher=Down Syndrome International Swimming Organisation|author=Emily Laurence|access-date=2 March 2024}}</ref>

==Classification==
{{Further|Disability sport classification}}
[[Image:Paralympic XC ski sitting.JPG|thumb|right|alt=A woman sitting on sit-skis, she is pushing herself with two poles|[[Olena Iurkovska]] of [[Ukraine at the 2010 Winter Paralympics|Ukraine]] competing on cross-country sit-skis at the 2010 Winter Paralympics]]

===Categories===
The [[International Paralympic Committee]] (IPC) has established ten disability categories, including physical, visual, and intellectual impairment. Athletes with one of these disabilities can compete in the Paralympics, are divided within each category according to their level of impairment, in a functional classification system which differs from sport to sport (not every sport can allow for every disability category). These categories apply to both Summer and Winter Paralympics.<ref name="paralympic.org">{{cite web|title=Layman's Guide to Paralympic Classification|url=http://www.paralympic.org/sites/default/files/document/120716152047682_classificationguide_1.pdf|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|access-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180309134129/https://www.paralympic.org/sites/default/files/document/120716152047682_ClassificationGuide_1.pdf|archive-date=9 March 2018}}</ref>

'''[[Physical disability|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''' – The 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 [[amputation|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 [[legal blindness|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).<ref name="paralympic.org"/> The [[sighted guide]]s 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 [[Goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeepers]] in [[5-a-side football]] became eligible to receive medals of their own.<ref name="thestar.com"/><ref name="bbc-ablebodied">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19422244 |title=Paralympics 2012: The able-bodied athletes at the Games |publisher=BBC News |date=31 August 2012 |access-date=31 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120831224407/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19422244 |archive-date=31 August 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

'''[[Intellectual disability]]''' – Athletes with a significant [[intellectual impairment]] 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.<ref name="paralympic.org"/> However, the [[IOC]]-recognized [[Special Olympics World Games]] are open to all people with intellectual disabilities.<ref name=specialolympics/>

===Classification system===
{{Main|Disability sport classification}}
[[File:Goalball vid Paralympics i Aten.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Three men wearing eye shades laying on the floor, a red ball is to the left of the image|The Swedish goalball team at the [[2004 Summer Paralympics]]]]
The Paralympics use a functional classification system for athletes, with some variation defined by different sports. 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.<ref name=lexi>{{cite web|url=https://lexi.global/sports/impairment-to-class/|title=Lexi parasports classification guide|accessdate=13 June 2025}}</ref>  

For sports like [[Para swimming|Paralympic swimming]] or [[Athletics at the Summer Paralympics|athletics]], which are open to athletes with a wide variety of impairments, participants are assigned into a range of classes based on the disability they have and their level of impairment. This aims to minimise the impact of an athlete's impairment on their sporting performance against their rivals. For example, in athletics and swimming, athletes with visual impairments compete in categories 11–13, with category 11 athletes having a very low light acuity and/or no light perception, and category 13 athletes having the least severe visual impairment eligible for Paralympic sport.<ref name=class>{{cite web |title=World Para Swimming Classifications and Categories – SB9, SB8. |publisher=International Paralympic Committee |url=https://www.paralympic.org/swimming/classification |access-date=17 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230717085533/https://www.paralympic.org/swimming/classification|archive-date=17 July 2023|url-status=live}}</ref>
<ref>{{cite web|title=Athletics |publisher=Australian Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympic.org.au/Sport/SportProfiles/Athletics.aspx |access-date=7 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100118115126/http://www.paralympic.org.au/Sport/SportProfiles/Athletics.aspx |archive-date=18 January 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

====Functional levelling of athletes====
In some sports, athletes will be required to use equipment that equalizes the physical limitations between them. For example the Paralympics recognizes three different grades of visual impairment. Athletes in the swimming S11 grade have the most severe visual disabilities, and all swimmers in this grade must wear blackened goggles to prevent any disadvantage from more severe visual impairments.<ref>{{cite web|title=Goalball|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|url=http://www.paralympic.org/Sport/IOSD_Sports/Goalball/index.html|access-date=8 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091024104216/http://www.paralympic.org/Sport/IOSD_Sports/Goalball/index.html | archive-date=24 October 2009}}</ref> 

====Team levelling====
There are also team competitions such as [[Wheelchair rugby at the Summer Paralympics|wheelchair rugby]] or relay swimming where teams are classified as a group. Each athlete is given a sport-specific point value based on their activity limitation. A lower score indicates a more severe activity limitation than a higher score. A team cannot 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 four players' combined disability number must total no more than eight points.<ref>{{cite web|title=Wheelchair Rugby|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|url=http://www.paralympic.org/Sport/IF_Sports/Wheelchair_Rugby/index.html|access-date=8 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619180525/http://paralympic.org/Sport/IF_Sports/Wheelchair_Rugby/index.html|archive-date=19 June 2010}}</ref> However in swimming relays there are four categories, with different points totals allowed. Each team must have a combined points value of less than the category total.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://lexi.global/sports/swimming/swimming-relay/34-point-relay|accessdate=13 June 2025|title=Lexi Paralympic Swimming Classifications: 34 point relay}}</ref>

==Sports==
{{Main|Paralympic sports}}
There are twenty-two sports on the Summer Paralympic program and six sports on the Winter Paralympics program. Within some of the sports are several events. For example, [[Alpine skiing at the Winter Paralympics|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.<ref>{{cite web|title=Organization |publisher=International Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/Organization/ |access-date=14 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100421005622/http://www.paralympic.org/IPC/Organization/ |archive-date=21 April 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref> There are national chapters for these [[List of international sports federations|International Sport Federations]] including [[National Paralympic Committee]]s, which are responsible for recruitment of athletes and governance of sports at the national level.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sport |publisher=International Paralympic Committee |url=http://www.paralympic.org/Sport/ |access-date=14 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100305234248/http://www.paralympic.org/Sport/ |archive-date=5 March 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Alleged cheating==
{{Main|Cheating at the Paralympic Games}}
After the [[2000 Summer Paralympics|2000 Sydney games]], a [[Spain at the Paralympic Games|Spanish]] basketball player alleged that several members of the gold medal-winning Spanish basketball team with intellectual disabilities (ID) did not have disabilities. He claimed that only two athletes out of the twelve-member team met the qualifications of an athlete with an intellectual disability.<ref name=cheating2>{{Cite news|title=Cheating shame of Paralympics|last=Slot|first=Owen|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=3 February 2001|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/2998162/Cheating-shame-of-Paralympics.html|access-date=7 April 2010|location=London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111222162456/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/2998162/Cheating-shame-of-Paralympics.html|archive-date=22 December 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> A controversy ensued and the [[International Paralympic Committee]] (IPC) called on the Spanish National Paralympic Committee to launch an investigation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.paralympic.org/release/Main_Sections_Menu/Media/Press_Releases/2000_11_27_a.html |title=IPC Calls For Full Investigation|access-date=7 April 2010|date=27 November 2000|publisher=International Paralympic Committee |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060118062536/http://www.paralympic.org/release/Main_Sections_Menu/Media/Press_Releases/2000_11_27_a.html |archive-date = 18 January 2006}}</ref> 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 Martín Vicente admitted that athletes around the world were breaking the ID eligibility rules. The IPC responded by starting an investigation of its own.<ref name=cheating2/> 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.<ref name=cheating2/> As a result, all ID competitions were suspended indefinitely.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.paralympic.org/release/Main_Sections_Menu/Media/Press_Releases/2001_03_09_a.html |title=IPC Suspends INAS-FID from Membership|access-date=7 April 2010|date=9 March 2001|publisher=International Paralympic Committee |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20041224162629/http://www.paralympic.org/release/Main_Sections_Menu/Media/Press_Releases/2001_03_09_a.html |archive-date = 24 December 2004}}</ref> 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]].<ref name=cheating>{{Cite news|title=Cheating does happen in the Paralympics|last=Grey-Thompson|first=Tanni|date=11 September 2008|work=The Daily Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympic-sport/2798515/Cheating-does-happens-in-the-Paralympics-Paralympics.html|access-date=7 April 2010|location=London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120828224222/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympic-sport/2798515/Cheating-does-happens-in-the-Paralympics-Paralympics.html|archive-date=28 August 2012|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Re-Inclusion of Athletes with Intellectual Impairment in Paralympic Sports |last=Van de Vliet |first=Peter |publisher=International Paralympic Committee |date=15 December 2009 |url=http://www.paralympic.org/export/sites/default/Sport/Classification/2009_12_15_Memo_IPC_Membership_ID_Athlete_Reinclusion_FINAL.pdf |access-date=7 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605163054/http://www.paralympic.org/export/sites/default/Sport/Classification/2009_12_15_Memo_IPC_Membership_ID_Athlete_Reinclusion_FINAL.pdf |archive-date=5 June 2011 }}</ref>

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.<ref name=cheating/> This was a decrease in comparison to the ten powerlifters and one track athlete who were banned from the 2000 Games.<ref name=steroids>{{Cite magazine|title=Paralympians can do the same thing as Olympic athletes-including cheating|publisher=CNNSI.com|magazine=Sports Illustrated|date=6 March 2002|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/more/news/2002/03/06/paralympics_cheating_ap/|access-date=7 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828002849/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/more/news/2002/03/06/paralympics_cheating_ap|archive-date=28 August 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web|title=Skier Fails Drug Test |last=Maffly |first=Bryan |publisher=Salt Lake 2002 Paralympics |date=13 March 2002 |url=http://saltlake2002.paralympic.org/ |access-date=7 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100605042933/http://saltlake2002.paralympic.org/ |archive-date=5 June 2010 }}</ref> At the 2010 Winter Paralympics in Vancouver, [[Sweden at the 2010 Winter Paralympics|Swedish]] curler [[Glenn Ikonen]] tested positive for a banned substance and was suspended for six months<ref>[http://www.paralympic.org/news/anti-doping-rule-violation-swedish-wheelchair-curler Anti-Doping Rule Violation of Swedish Wheelchair Curler] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140316004137/http://www.paralympic.org/news/anti-doping-rule-violation-swedish-wheelchair-curler |date=16 March 2014 }}, [[International Paralympic Committee]] (IPC), 4 May 2010</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Winter Paralympics 2010: Wheelchair curler's positive drug test mars closing ceremony|last=Davies|first=Gareth|publisher=Telegraph Media Group Limited|work=The Telegraph|date=21 March 2010|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympic-sport/7494715/Winter-Paralympics-2010-Wheelchair-curlers-positive-drug-test-mars-closing-ceremony.html|access-date=3 May 2010|location=London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120828224228/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympic-sport/7494715/Winter-Paralympics-2010-Wheelchair-curlers-positive-drug-test-mars-closing-ceremony.html|archive-date=28 August 2012|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Swedish wheelchair curler suspended for use of an illegal drug |last=Little |first=Lyndon |publisher=Canwest Publishing Inc. |work=The Vancouver Sun |date=19 March 2010 |url=https://vancouversun.com/sports/2010wintergames/Swedish+wheelchair+curler+suspended+illegal+drug/2703907/story.html |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100424033136/http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/2010wintergames/Swedish%2Bwheelchair%2Bcurler%2Bsuspended%2Billegal%2Bdrug/2703907/story.html |archive-date=24 April 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Another concern now facing Paralympic officials is the technique of "[[boosting (doping)|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 [[Paralympic cross-country skiing|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.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Feel-bad story of the day: Paralympians appear to be cheating|work=The National Post|agency=Agence France-Presse|date=17 March 2010|url=https://nationalpost.com/sports/feel-bad-story-of-the-day-paralympians-appear-to-be-cheating|access-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://archive.today/20181225193021/https://nationalpost.com/sports/feel-bad-story-of-the-day-paralympians-appear-to-be-cheating|archive-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

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.<ref name="Calgary">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}}.</ref> [[World Anti-Doping Agency|The World Anti-Doping Agency]] (WADA) is currently researching both gene doping and gene therapy, in part to discern the boundary between the two closely related concepts.<ref name="WADA">{{cite web |publisher=World Anti Doping Agency |date=October 2009 |title=Gene Doping |url=http://www.wada-ama.org/en/Science-Medicine/Science-topics/Gene-Doping/ |access-date=27 September 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091121094012/http://www.wada-ama.org/en/Science-Medicine/Science-topics/Gene-Doping/ |archive-date=21 November 2009}}.</ref>

The IPC have been working with WADA since 2003, to ensure compliance with WADA's anti-doping code among its Paralympic athletes.<ref name="PlayTrue">{{cite magazine |publisher=World Anti-Doping Agency |date=2008 |magazine=Play True |issue=3 |title=Levelling the Playing Field |url=http://www.wada-ama.org/Documents/Resources/Publications/PlayTrue_Magazine/PlayTrue_2008_3_Levelling_the_Playing_Field_EN.pdf |access-date=13 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120529042027/http://www.wada-ama.org/Documents/Resources/Publications/PlayTrue_Magazine/PlayTrue_2008_3_Levelling_the_Playing_Field_EN.pdf}}</ref> 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.<ref name="PlayTrue"/> 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.<ref name="PlayTrue"/>

Having sent samples for forensic analysis, the IPC found evidence that the [[Doping in Russia|prevalent doping by Russian athletes]] was in operation at the [[2014 Winter Paralympics]] in Sochi.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{Cite news|title=The IPC suspends the Russian Paralympic Committee with immediate effect|publisher=IPC |date=7 August 2016|url=https://www.paralympic.org/news/ipc-suspends-russian-paralympic-committee-immediate-effect|access-date=27 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171207035019/https://www.paralympic.org/news/ipc-suspends-russian-paralympic-committee-immediate-effect|archive-date=7 December 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> On 7 August 2016, the IPC's Governing Board voted unanimously to ban the entire Russian team from the [[2016 Summer Paralympics]], citing the [[Russian Paralympic Committee]]'s inability to enforce the IPC's Anti-[[Doping in sport|Doping]] Code and the World Anti-Doping Code which is "a fundamental constitutional requirement".<ref name="ReferenceB"/> IPC President [[Philip Craven|Sir Philip Craven]] stated that the Russian government had "catastrophically failed its Para athletes".<ref>{{Cite news|title=The IPC decision on the membership status of the Russian Paralympic Committee|publisher=IPC |first1=Philip |last1=Craven |date=7 August 2016 |url=https://www.paralympic.org/news/ipc-decision-membership-status-russian-paralympic-committee-0 |access-date=27 November 2017|url-status=live|archive-date=28 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170828203613/https://www.paralympic.org/news/ipc-decision-membership-status-russian-paralympic-committee-0}}</ref> IPC Athletes' Council Chairperson and [[Canadian Paralympic Committee|CPC]] Member [[Todd Nicholson]] said that Russia had used athletes as "pawns" to "show global prowess".<ref>{{Cite news|title=The IPC decision on the membership status of the Russian Paralympic Committee|publisher=IPC |first1=Todd |last1=Nicholson |date=7 August 2016|url=https://www.paralympic.org/news/ipc-decision-membership-status-russian-paralympic-committee |access-date=27 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170828210654/https://www.paralympic.org/news/ipc-decision-membership-status-russian-paralympic-committee|archive-date=28 August 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Notable champions and achievements==
{{Further|Lists of Paralympic medalists|List of multiple Paralympic gold medalists}}
[[Trischa Zorn]] of the [[United States at the Paralympic Games|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&nbsp;years from [[1980 Summer Paralympics|1980]] to [[2004 Summer Paralympics|2004]]. She was also an alternate on the 1980 American Olympic swim team, but did not go to the [[1980 Summer Olympics|Olympics]] due to a [[1980 Summer Olympics boycott|boycott]] by the United States and several of its allies.<ref>{{cite web|title=Trischa Zorn-Hudson|publisher=USA Swimming|url=http://www.usaswimming.org/_Rainbow/Documents/9c996fd2-8691-48d4-87f4-b51a5c65133a/Trischa%20Zorn-Hudson%20Resume%202009.pdf|access-date=8 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619095827/http://usaswimming.org/_Rainbow/Documents/9c996fd2-8691-48d4-87f4-b51a5c65133a/Trischa%20Zorn-Hudson%20Resume%202009.pdf|archive-date=19 June 2010|url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|title=Trischa Zorn|publisher=CNN |magazine=Sports Illustrated |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/paralympics/news/2000/09/15/zorn_bios/|access-date=8 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023100121/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/paralympics/news/2000/09/15/zorn_bios/|archive-date=23 October 2012|url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Ragnhild Myklebust]] of [[Norway at the Paralympics|Norway]] holds the record for the most medals ever won at the Winter Paralympic Games. Competing in a variety of events between 1988 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.<ref>{{cite web|title=2002 Winter Paralympics |publisher=Disabled Sports USA |work=Challenge Magazine |date=Spring 2002 |url=http://www.dsusa.org/ChallMagarchive/challmag-spring02-winterparalympics.html |access-date=19 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030427080320/http://www.dsusa.org/ChallMagarchive/challmag-spring02-winterparalympics.html |archive-date=27 April 2003 }}</ref> [[Neroli Fairhall]], a paraplegic archer from New Zealand, was the first paraplegic competitor, and the third 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.<ref name="NYTimes.com"/>

==Host cities==
{{Main|List of Paralympic Games host cities}}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="text-align:center" rowspan="2" | Year
! colspan="3" | [[Summer Paralympic Games]]<ref name=gamesSummer>{{cite web|title=Paralympic Games – Summer|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|url=http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games/summer|access-date=15 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315011339/http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games/summer|archive-date=15 March 2014|url-status=dead }}</ref>
! colspan="3" | [[Winter Paralympic Games]]<ref name=gamesWinter>{{cite web|title=Paralympic Games – Winter|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|url=http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games/winter|access-date=15 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315011539/http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games/winter|archive-date=15 March 2014|url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
! style="text-align:center" | Edition
! Host(s)
!Top nation
! style="text-align:center" | Edition
! Host(s)
!Top nation
|-
| 1960 || style="text-align:center"|[[1960 Summer Paralympics|1]] || {{Flagicon|Italy}} Rome
|{{flagIPC|ITA|1960 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Rome 1960 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/rome-1960/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=25 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210825171850/https://www.paralympic.org/rome-1960/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
| colspan="3" rowspan="4" |
|- style="background:#efefef;"
| 1964 || style="text-align:center"|[[1964 Summer Paralympics|2]] || {{Flagicon|JPN|1947}} Tokyo
|{{flagIPC|USA|1964 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tokyo 1964 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/tokyo-1964/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826003429/https://www.paralympic.org/tokyo-1964/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|1968 || style="text-align:center"|[[1968 Summer Paralympics|3]] || {{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Tel Aviv]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|1968 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tel Aviv 1968 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/tel-aviv-1968/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=7 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211107201317/https://www.paralympic.org/tel-aviv-1968/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|1972 || style="text-align:center"|[[1972 Summer Paralympics|4]] || {{Flagicon|FRG}} [[Heidelberg]]
|{{flagIPC|FRG|1972 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Heidelberg 1972 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/heidelberg-1972/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=25 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210825194149/https://www.paralympic.org/heidelberg-1972/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|1976 || style="text-align:center"|[[1976 Summer Paralympics|5]] || {{Flagicon|Canada}} [[Toronto]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|1976 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Toronto 1976 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/toronto-1976/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=3 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210803204821/https://www.paralympic.org/toronto-1976/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| style="text-align:center" |[[1976 Winter Paralympics|1]] || {{Flagicon|Sweden}} [[Örnsköldsvik]]
|{{flagIPC|FRG|1976 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ornskoldsvik 1976 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/ornskoldsvik-1976/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=16 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816210822/https://www.paralympic.org/ornskoldsvik-1976/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|1980 || style="text-align:center"|[[1980 Summer Paralympics|6]] || {{Flagicon|Netherlands}} [[Arnhem]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|1980 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Arnhem 1980 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/arnhem-1980/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=19 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211019105734/https://www.paralympic.org/arnhem-1980/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| style="text-align:center" |[[1980 Winter Paralympics|2]] || {{Flagicon|Norway}} [[Geilo]]
|{{flagIPC|NOR|1980 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Geilo 1980 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/geilo-1980/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=19 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119155703/https://www.paralympic.org/geilo-1980/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|1984 || style="text-align:center"|[[1984 Summer Paralympics|7]] || {{Flagicon|USA}} New York City<br />{{Flagicon|GBR}} [[Stoke Mandeville]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|1984 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Stoke Mandeville & New York 1984 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/stoke-mandeville-new-york-1984/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=28 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210828185408/https://www.paralympic.org/stoke-mandeville-new-york-1984/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| style="text-align:center" |[[1984 Winter Paralympics|3]] || {{Flagicon|AUT}} [[Innsbruck]]
|{{flagIPC|AUT|1984 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Innsbruck 1984 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/innsbruck-1984/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=8 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508150720/https://www.paralympic.org/innsbruck-1984/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|1988 || style="text-align:center"|[[1988 Summer Paralympics|8]] || {{Flagicon|KOR|1984}} [[Seoul]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|1988 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Seoul 1988 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/seoul-1988/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=25 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210825151804/https://www.paralympic.org/seoul-1988/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| style="text-align:center" |[[1988 Winter Paralympics|4]] || {{Flagicon|Austria}} [[Innsbruck]]
|{{flagIPC|NOR|1988 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Innsbruck 1988 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/innsbruck-1988/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=5 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210905080643/https://www.paralympic.org/innsbruck-1988/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|1992 || style="text-align:center"|[[1992 Summer Paralympics|9]] || {{Flagicon|Spain}} [[Barcelona]] & [[Madrid]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://paralympicanorak.wordpress.com/2012/06/25/madrid-1992-the-paralympic-games-that-time-forgot/ |title=Madrid 1992 – the Paralympic Games that time forgot!  |publisher=paralympicanorak |date=25 June 2012 |access-date=13 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615105751/http://paralympicanorak.wordpress.com/2012/06/25/madrid-1992-the-paralympic-games-that-time-forgot/ |archive-date=15 June 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|{{flagIPC|USA|1992 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Barcelona 1992 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/barcelona-1992/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=25 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210825151941/https://www.paralympic.org/barcelona-1992/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| style="text-align:center" |[[1992 Winter Paralympics|5]] || {{Flagicon|France|1974}} [[Tignes]] and [[Albertville]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|1992 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Albertville 1992 Paralympic Winter Games – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/tignes-albertville-1992/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=2 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502100306/https://www.paralympic.org/tignes-albertville-1992/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|1994 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[1994 Winter Paralympics|6]] || {{Flagicon|Norway}} [[Lillehammer]]
|{{flagIPC|NOR|1994 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Lillehammer 1994 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/lillehammer-1994/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=1 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501192708/https://www.paralympic.org/lillehammer-1994/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|1996 || style="text-align:center"|[[1996 Summer Paralympics|10]] || {{Flagicon|USA}} [[Atlanta]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|1996 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Atlanta 1996 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/atlanta-1996/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826154425/https://www.paralympic.org/atlanta-1996/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|1998 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[1998 Winter Paralympics|7]] || {{Flagicon|JPN|1947}} [[Nagano (city)|Nagano]]
|{{flagIPC|NOR|1998 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Nagano 1998 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/nagano-1998/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=14 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514034124/https://www.paralympic.org/nagano-1998/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|2000 || style="text-align:center"|[[2000 Summer Paralympics|11]] || {{Flagicon|Australia}} [[Sydney]]
|{{flagIPC|AUS|2000 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sydney 2000 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/sydney-2000/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826131850/https://www.paralympic.org/sydney-2000/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2002 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[2002 Winter Paralympics|8]] || {{Flagicon|USA}} [[Salt Lake City]]
|{{flagIPC|GER|2002 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Salt Lake City 2002 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/salt-lake-city-2002/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=1 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501111849/https://www.paralympic.org/salt-lake-city-2002/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|2004 || style="text-align:center"|[[2004 Summer Paralympics|12]] || {{Flagicon|Greece}} [[Athens]]
|{{flagIPC|CHN|2004 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Athens 2004 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/athens-2004/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826022933/https://www.paralympic.org/athens-2004/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2006 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[2006 Winter Paralympics|9]] || {{Flagicon|ITA|2003}} [[Turin]]
|{{flagIPC|RUS|2006 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Torino 2006 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/torino-2006/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=1 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501121558/https://www.paralympic.org/torino-2006/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|2008 || style="text-align:center"|[[2008 Summer Paralympics|13]] || {{Flagicon|China}} Beijing
|{{flagIPC|CHN|2008 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Beijing 2008 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/beijing-2008/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826025859/https://www.paralympic.org/beijing-2008/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2010 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[2010 Winter Paralympics|10]] || {{Flagicon|Canada}} [[Vancouver]]-[[Whistler, British Columbia|Whistler]]
|{{flagIPC|GER|2010 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Vancouver 2010 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/vancouver-2010/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=3 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211103134901/https://www.paralympic.org/vancouver-2010/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|2012 || style="text-align:center"|[[2012 Summer Paralympics|14]] || {{Flagicon|GBR}} London
|{{flagIPC|CHN|2012 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=London 2012 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/london-2012/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=12 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200212204102/https://www.paralympic.org/london-2012/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2014 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[2014 Winter Paralympics|11]] || {{Flagicon|Russia}} [[Sochi]]
|{{flagIPC|RUS|2014 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sochi 2014 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/sochi-2014/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=5 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105144625/https://www.paralympic.org/sochi-2014/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|2016 || style="text-align:center"|[[2016 Summer Paralympics|15]] || {{Flagicon|Brazil}} [[Rio de Janeiro]]
|{{flagIPC|CHN|2016 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Rio 2016 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/rio-2016/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=30 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210730032551/https://www.paralympic.org/rio-2016/results|url-status=live}}</ref>|| ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2018 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[2018 Winter Paralympics|12]] || {{Flagicon|KOR}} [[Pyeongchang County|PyeongChang]]
|{{flagIPC|USA|2018 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=PyeongChang 2018 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/pyeongchang-2018/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=23 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723193851/https://www.paralympic.org/pyeongchang-2018/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|2020 || style="text-align:center"|[[2020 Summer Paralympics|16]] || {{Flagicon|Japan}} Tokyo{{ref label|reference_name_A|a|a}}
|{{flagIPC|CHN|2020 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tokyo 2020 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/tokyo-2020/results|access-date=5 September 2021|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826111647/https://www.paralympic.org/tokyo-2020/results|url-status=live}}</ref>
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2022 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[2022 Winter Paralympics|13]] || {{Flagicon|China}} Beijing
|{{flagIPC|CHN|2022 Winter}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Beijing 2022 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/beijing-2022/results|access-date=12 March 2022|website=International Paralympic Committee}}</ref>
|-
|2024 || style="text-align:center"|[[2024 Summer Paralympics|17]] || {{Flagicon|France}} Paris
|{{flagIPC|CHN|2024 Summer}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Paris 2024 – Results|url=https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024/results|access-date=15 November 2025|website=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=2 November 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241102010801/https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024/results|url-status=live}}</ref> || ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2026 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |[[2026 Winter Paralympics|14]] || {{Flagicon|Italy}} [[Milan]]-[[Cortina d'Ampezzo|Cortina]]
|
|-
|2028 || style="text-align:center"|[[2028 Summer Paralympics|18]] || {{Flagicon|USA}} Los Angeles
| || ||
|
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2030 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |15 || {{Flagicon|France}} [[French Alps]]
|
|-
|2032 || style="text-align:center"|[[2032 Summer Paralympics|19]] || {{Flagicon|Australia}} [[Brisbane]]
| || ||
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|2034 || ||
| || style="text-align:center" |16 || {{Flagicon|USA}} [[Salt Lake City]]
|
|}

<small>{{note label|reference_name_A|a|a}}Postponed 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.<ref>{{Cite web|date=24 March 2020|title=Joint Statement from the International Olympic Committee and the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee – Olympic News |url=https://www.olympic.org/news/joint-statement-from-the-international-olympic-committee-and-the-tokyo-2020-organising-committee|access-date=24 March 2020|website=International Olympic Committee}}</ref> The Games were held from 24 August to 5 September 2021.<ref>{{cite news |date=30 March 2020|title=Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics: New dates confirmed for 2021|publisher=[[BBC Sport]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/olympics/52091224|access-date=30 March 2020|url-status=live |archive-date=24 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200424102813/https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/olympics/52091224}}</ref></small>

==See also==
* {{Portal-inline|Sports}}
* [[All-time Paralympic Games medal table]]
* [[Parapan American Games]]
* [[Asian Para Games]]
* [[Commonwealth Paraplegic Games]]
* [[Cybathlon]]
* [[Disability flag]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* {{Cite book|title=Benchmark Games: The Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games|last1=Cashman|first1=Richard|last2=Darcy|first2=Simon|publisher=Walla Walla Press|location=Petersham, Australia|year=2008|isbn=978-1-876718-05-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IOOEKhrn1IAC&pg=PA36 |access-date=29 April 2010}}
* {{Cite book|title=Disability Sport|last1=DePauw|first1=Karen P.|last2=Gavron|first2=Susan J.|publisher=Human Kinetics|location=Champaign, United States|year=2005|isbn=978-0-7360-4638-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BPsqAoFtG-sC&pg=PA92 |access-date=29 April 2010}}
* {{Cite book|title=Advanced PE for Edexcel|last=Galligan|first=Frank|publisher=Heinemann Educational Publishers|location=Oxford, United Kingdom|year=2000|isbn=978-0-435-50643-8|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XFP_1Z1gKK8C&pg=PT96 |access-date=29 April 2010}}
* {{Cite book|title=The Paralympic Games: Empowerment or Side Show?|last1=Gilbert|first1=Keith|last2=Schantz|first2=Otto J.|publisher=Meyer and Meyer Ltd.|location=New York, United States|year=2008|isbn=978-1-84126-265-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JnP_ZJUUdPwC&pg=PA140 |access-date=29 April 2010}}
* {{Cite book|title=Digital disability: the social construction of disability in new media|last1=Goggin|first1=Gerard|last2=Newell|first2=Christopher|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|location=Oxford, United Kingdom|year=2003|isbn=978-0-7425-1844-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=808HMxDE2pYC&pg=PA91 |access-date=3 May 2010}}
* {{Cite book|title=The cultural politics of the paralympic movement|last=Howe|first=P. David|publisher=Routledge|location=New York, United States|year=2008|isbn=9780415288866|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4smWnHHJ1OEC&pg=PA59 |access-date=29 April 2010}}

==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==
{{sisterlinks|d=Q73633|c=Category:Paralympic Games|n=Category:Paralympics|b=no|v=no|voy=no|m=no|mw=no|s=no|wikt=no|species=no}}
* [https://www.paralympic.org/ Official website]
* [http://www.paralympicsport.tv/ Paralympic Sport TV, web-TV channel of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC)]

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