Sport and Paralympics
This page features disability news on Sport and Paralympics from the Debrief Library. See also news on other subjects.
International
Dementia and Football: a taboo in the most popular sport in the world. (In Spanish, Jan, Yo También.)
The first Olympiad for People with Disabilities: A milestone for chess. (Jan, ChessBase)
What to look forward to in the Paralympic Movement in 2023 (Jan, International Paralympic Committee)
What should the future of para sport look like at the Commonwealth Games? (Aug, ABC News)
Special Olympics Unified with Refugees brings inclusion to the world's most marginalized (Apr, Fansided)
A blog on Inclusion through sport and sports programmes that have promoted this. (Mar, LFTW)
Stop Calling Paralympic and Disabled Athletes “Inspiring”. (Mar, Bitch Media)
Book review of More Than Medals A History of the Paralympics and Disability Sports in Postwar Japan. (Mar, H-Disability)
As an Afghan Paralympian, sport gave me opportunities all disabled people deserve (Mar, the Guardian)
See highlights and results of the Paralympic Winter Games held in Beijing between 4th and 13th March. (Mar, Paralympic)
Paralympic Classifications Are Meant To Level The Playing Field. Do They? Detailed breakdown of classification systems and results. (Mar, Five Thirty Eight)
Special Olympics Calls Off World Winter Games In Russia (Mar, Disability Scoop)
Opening ceremony of the Paralympics started with a speech calling for peace (4 Mar, Youtube, Channel 4 Sport)
IPC makes decisions regarding RPC and NPC Belarus. Decision for athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate as neutrals. And "The Paralympic Honour bestowed to Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, has been withdrawn." (2 Mar, IPC) Athletes of Ukraine criticised the IPC for not taking a strong enough stance, “choosing bloodshed and profits over principle and stakeholders”. See also video of their appeal, (28 Feb).
The Para Equestrian Digest a new monthly digest "building inclusion, one story at a time" (Feb, FEI)
Channel 4 presenting team for Winter Paralympics will all be disabled people (Feb, the Guardian)
Africa
The development of a policy brief on physical activity and health in Africa for children and adolescents with disabilities: COVID-19 and beyond. (Dec, African Journal on Disability)
Australia
Paralympics Australia announces new plan for Para-sport to Brisbane 2032 and beyond. “Paralympics Australia (PA) has called out the inequity in funding and support for the Para-sport system” (Mar, ABC News)
‘It makes you think about things’: Australian Rules Football’s uncomfortable truth with brain trauma (Feb, Brisbane Times)
‘I am who I am’: how a blind Kurdish refugee became an Australian sporting superstar. (Nov, the Guardian)
Brazil
Great pictures of Paraskating (no image description, Feb, @Aurch, Instagram)
Canada
Informing Future Paralympic Media Approaches: The Perspective of Canadian Paralympic Athletes. “I have no problem talking a little bit about how I got started in the sport or whatever. I just don't want that to be the primary focus of the article. I don't want it to be focused on my disability. I want it to be focused on my ability.” (Jun, Project ECHO)
China
Disabled Chinese Fight for Equal Rights Despite Paralympic Glory. (Mar, NYT) “Even China’s most decorated Paralympians have faced discrimination.” Sure, yes, as have decorated Paralympians in every other country?
Government paper on China's Parasports: Progress and the Protection of Rights. “The remarkable achievements of parasports in China reflect both the sportsmanship and sporting prowess of the disabled, and the progress China is making in human rights and national development.” (Mar, Xinhua)
China is a Paralympics star, but its people with disabilities face high hurdles (Feb, NPR)
The lowdown on on being disabled in China. With accompanying podcast:
“the perception of disability has changed a lot from my childhood. Now the group of people with disability is more diverse. So, some people are well educated and so they work for some big IT companies which are more open for us. And more importantly is that people with a disability can go outside to use the public transportation and also go shopping, and so the common people become more familiar with them. [...]”
“There were many public demonstrations before 2012, some of them legal, some of them illegal, and many of them broken up by the police. I remember there was a huge demonstration of wheelchair users in Anhui Province in about 2009 for various reasons, because people were being denied accessible homes. So, there was a big public movement at that time. And that’s all stopped. You do not see public activism or protest any longer in China. But what you do get is people working in much more subtle ways. ” (podcast, with transcript, Mar, BBC) (Mar, BBC)
China excels at the Paralympics, "but its disabled citizens are fighting for access. " Like many other countries doing well at the Paralympics, eh. (Jan, NPR)
France
Paris 2024 Olympics: Slow roll-out of accessible services worries disability campaigners (Feb, Le Monde)
Paris 2024: two years from the Paralympic Games, what are the challenges to be met regarding accessibility? (Aug, California18)
Ahead of 2024 Olympics, Paris sponsors accessibility of neighbourhoods. (Jul, The Mayor)
India
Awaiting the right move. “Persons with Disabilities and activists share their grievances on inaccessibility at the ongoing Chess Olympiad and how it could have been made better” (Aug, The New Indian Express)
Japan
More accessibility: the Tokyo Olympic legacy for people with disabilities. (Jul, La Prensa Latina)
Liberia
First Wheel Chair Basketball Court Dedicated (Feb, Front Page Africa)
Mozambique
Coach Muianga on mission to add Para powerlifting to Mozambique's sports agenda (Mar, International Paralympic Committee)
Namibia
‘Once they saw us everybody stood still’ Para cycling making waves (Jul, International Paralympic Committee)
Qatar
Accessibility takes centre stage as countdown to Qatar 2022 continues (Nov, FIFA) Also on EuroNews.
Will FIFA World Cup 2022 mark the beginning of a new era for accessibility in Qatar?
Sierra Leone
Amputee football association brings together Sierra Leone's civil war survivors (Feb, CNN)
Ukraine
Disability sport in Ukraine has 'died' thanks to the Russian invasion the country's Paralympic boss says. Ukraine came second in the overall medal table in this year's Winter Paralympics. (May, Business Insider)
United Kingdom
“I want motorsport to be accessible for disabled people.” (Jan, RedBull)
Did the Paralympic games change things for disabled people? The legacy ten years on. (Oct, Spirit of 2012)
Activity levels among disabled people have failed to return to pre-Covid levels (Jun, the Guardian)
‘Stare at me because I deserve to be stared at’: Lauren Steadman and the evolution of representation at the Paralympics (Mar, the 19th)
United States
Born without hands, Brandon Canesi is playing golf on his own terms. (Feb, CNN)
Former players sue NFL over how it handled disability benefits (Feb, NPR)
How the NFL avoids paying disabled players — with the union’s help. “A system still stacked against players left broken by football.” (Feb, Washington Post)
Sheri Byrne-Haber’s on the road to the 2024 Paris Paralympics: it “begins with ableism, discrimination and archery”. (Sep, URevolution)
The Hardest Part About Being a Deaf Hiker? Everyone Else. (Jun, Backpacker)
Deaf Performers Were Not Included At The Halftime Show: Separate is Not Equal. See a more positive article on inclusion of deaf rappers. (Feb, Access Vine)
‘I need to speak my truth’: Allegations of emotional abuse led to the resignation of the Paralympic women’s wheelchair basketball coach (Dec, 19th News)