There are 503 golds up for grabs . . . from cycling to murderball

 
28 August 2012

The Paralympics begin tomorrow night with the opening ceremony and last until Sunday 9 September. In that time, 4,200 athletes from 166 nations will compete for 503 golds up for grabs. On the eve of the event, Matt Majendie gives you a guide to what you need to know about the Games . . .

When and how did they begin?

They were the brainchild of Dr Ludwig Guttmann and first took place alongside the 1948 Olympics when London last hosted the Games. Back then, they were known as the Stoke Mandeville Games or the International Wheelchair Games. It was not until 1960 that Paralympians first used the same Olympic venues while the term Paralympic, from the Greek word ‘para’ (meaning every) was first coined for the 1988 Games in Seoul.

Who are the star turns?

From a British point of view, the team boasts 288 Paralympians. Among the better known are swimmer Ellie Simmonds and athlete David Weir.

The most decorated Paralympian of the line-up is equestrian Lee Pearson, who already boasts nine golds at the Games and is aiming to surpass Tanni Grey-Thompson’s Paralympian record of 11 golds in the ensuing days.

From an international perspective, the most recognisable Paralympian on the planet is South African Oscar Pistorius who, fresh from competing at the Olympics, will defend his three titles from Beijing, in the T43/44 100m, 200m and 400m.

Dutch wheelchair tennis player Esther Vergeer boasts an unbeaten singles record that dates back to January 2003.

How will Great Britain do?

Expectations are very high. The team were second behind China in the medal table at the 2008 Paralympics and UK Sport have set them the target of beating the Beijing haul of 102 medals, of which 42 were gold. Expect GB to dominate in track cycling and also make their mark in the swimming and athletics.

Is it all the same sports and venues as at the Olympics?

Not quite. Many of the same sports and venues will be in action, such as athletics at the Olympic Stadium and track cycling in the velodrome.

But there will be fewer sports, 21 in total, with some new additions. One notable one is murderball, the other name for wheelchair rugby.

Others include goalball, in which visually impaired athletes try to throw or roll a ball into the opposition’s net, and boccia, a sport not dissimilar to bowls.

Brands Hatch will host the road cycling and the wheelchair tennis is at the Olympic Park.

What are the classifications?

Trying to get to grips with the Paralympic classifications can seem very complicated but the breakdown is more simple than it first seems. In essence, the lower the number in each sport, the greater the disability of the athlete in question.

Meanwhile, the letters give a guide to the sport in question. So, for an example, an S1 athlete is the most severely disabled competitor in swimming.

It gets more complex for sports such as cycling which has a variety of categories: bicycle (C1-5 for those able to use a standard bicycle), tandem (TB for visually impaired riders with a sighted cyclist), handcycle (H1-4) and tricycle (T1-2).

What is the official Paralympic symbol?

Some of you may have seen the Olympic rings on Tower Bridge replaced by a new symbol, the three agitos (from the Latin for ‘I move’) which are red, blue and green and are the colours most used in the numerous national flags around the world.

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