Should the Paralympics and the Olympics be part of the same big Olympics event? Don't the Paralympics further marginalize the disabled?

Question

Why do the disabled people have to have their own games? Why not just have all their events integrated into the regular Olympics? You would foot races one day, and then wheel chair basketball the next, and so fourth?

Doesn't it kind of treat them as different to have them in their own games?

Answer 1

I don't think any Olympic venue has the capacity to handle both the Olympics and Paralympics.



According to Wikipedia, there were some 11,300 Olympians and some 4,300 Paralympians. However, it's not just a third more athletes. Paralympians require more room for wheelchairs and other specialized equipment, both for accommodations and transportation. Venues have to be altered for some sports everyday if switching between Olympics and Paralympics on alternate days. And that's just athletes. Each team has coaches, trainers, managers, etc. Plus, given the rules are rules are vastly different between Olympics and Paralympics, a whole new set of officials are needed.



It's a nice thought, giving them equal billing. But the Olympics and Paralympics by themselves are already logistical migranes. Combining them would be a head imploder.

Answer 2

It may be the next stage. It took a long time for it to be normal that the Paralympics are always held in the same place as the Olympics, just slightly afterwards.



The problem is the Olympics are already big and expensive, and to have all the Paralympians there at the same time would mean providing even more accommodation. The whole combined event would have to be a lot longer. There would be even fewer cities than now who could afford it and be able to cope with the headache of staging it.



I wonder if, in fact, they are better separate. TV coverage would focus on the able-bodied, while having the Paralympics separately means it's ALL about what people with disabilities can do and it makes them more visible. There are certainly competitors who have been inspired to try and be there too because they've seen you CAN be a blind cyclist, or a runner with no feet, or whatever, and perhaps they wouldn't have seen that so much if these events had been drowned out by the able-bodied events.

Answer 3

The Paralympics have 6 disability groups. and 23 sports. In swimming there is 14 classifications. S1 to 10 physical S11 to 13 visual. and S14 intellectual. With each classification have 6 to 10 races. Athletics has lots of events too. Plus you need a lot more accommodation. plus some need more spaces for their wheelchair. And the media would mostly focus on able body and it would of been hard for Para athlete to display their talent.

Answer 4

I think they should be the same event but then the games would be longer than two weeks.

Answer 5

I would like to see it merged