1. Winter Paralympic Games
Tara Gleason & Joe Galarza

2. What are the Paralympic Games?
An international sport event that gives world-class athletes living with a disability a chance to compete. This includes:
Mobility disabilities
Amputees
Visual disabilities
Those with cerebral palsy
Games are held every 4 years, following the Olympic Games, and are governed by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC)

3. Origin of the Paralympic Games
Dates back to 1948 when Ludwig Guttmann organized a sports competition which involved World War II veterans that had spinal injuries
He believed sport competitions were an excellent tool for rehabilitation
The name derives from the Greek “para” (“besides” or “alongside”) and thus refers to a competition held in parallel with the Olympic Games

4. First Winter Games! Hosted in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden in 1976
Alpine and Nordic skiing for amputees and visually impaired athletes where the main events
ice sledge racing was included as a demonstration event.
There were over 250 athletes from 16 countries in attendance
this was first time athletes with impairments other than wheelchair athletes were permitted to compete.

5. History
Year Games Host City Country 1976 Winter Paralympics I Örnsköldsvik, Sweden 1980 Winter Paralympics II Geilo, Norway 1984 Winter Paralympics III Innsbruck, Austria 1988 Winter Paralympics IV Innsbruck, Austria 1992 Winter Paralympics V Tignes – Albertville 1994 Winter Paralympics VI Lillehammer, Norway 1998 Winter Paralympics VII Nagano, Japan 2002 Winter Paralympics VIII Salt Lake City, United States 2006 Winter Paralympics IX Turin, Italy 2010 Winter Paralympics X Vancouver, Canada 2014 Winter Paralympics XI Sochi, Russia

6. SPORTS! Five sports were on the 2010 program: Apline Skiing
Biathlon Cross-country skiing
Wheelchair curling
Sledge hockey

7. Disability Categories for Paralympic Games
Amputee: Athletes with a partial or total loss of at least one limb. Cerebral Palsy: Athletes with non-progressive brain damage, for example cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, stroke or similar disabilities affecting muscle control, balance or coordination. Wheelchair: Athletes with spinal cord injuries and other disabilities which require them to compete in a wheelchair. Visually Impaired: Athletes with vision impairment ranging from partial vision, sufficient to be judged legally blind, to total blindness.
Athletes with a physical disability that do not fall strictly under one of the other five categories, such as dwarfism, multiple sclerosis or congenital deformities of the limb are also eligible