An Overview of Sports at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris
The commencement of the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris is imminent, featuring an impressive array of competitions that will span 11 days, with thousands of elite athletes from around the globe vying for medals in a total of 549 events. This event showcases the remarkable abilities of athletes participating across 22 distinct sports, which encompass both individual and team competitions, as described in detail by Olympics.com.
The sports featured at the 2024 Paralympics include:
1. **Para Archery:** Athletes compete standing or in wheelchairs, shooting arrows over distances of 50 or 70 meters, starting with a ranking round consisting of 72 arrows.
2. **Para Athletics:** This segment includes track events, jumping events, and marathons, accommodating participants using wheelchairs, prostheses, or throwing seats.
3. **Para Badminton:** Participants compete in singles and pairs, categorized into six classes based on the severity of their impairments.
4. **Blind Football:** This variant is designed for athletes with vision impairment, utilizing an audible ball for play.
5. **Boccia:** Exclusively for athletes with severe motor impairments, the objective is to throw balls as close as possible to a small target known as the “jack.”
6. **Para Canoe:** Competitions take place over a distance of 200 meters in stable single-seater boats.
7. **Para Cycling:** Athletes utilize various bicycles suited to their classifications, including handcycles and tricycles.
8. **Para Equestrian:** Events include individual, team, and freestyle dressage tests performed to music.
9. **Goalball:** A team game for visually impaired and blind athletes, where teams roll a ball with bells into their opponents’ goal.
10. **Para Judo:** Athletes with visual impairments engage in judo while maintaining contact with their opponent’s judogi throughout the bout.
11. **Para Powerlifting:** A bench press competition structured into ten weight categories for men and women.
12. **Para Rowing:** Involving 2,000-meter races designed for various impairment categories, with fixed seating for athletes unable to use their legs.
13. **Shooting Para Sport:** Competitors in rifle and pistol events shoot from varying distances while using different support methods.
14. **Sitting Volleyball:** Teams of six compete in a modified format of volleyball on a smaller court with a lower net.
15. **Para Swimming:** Athletes compete in various strokes and distances, including breaststroke and freestyle.
16. **Para Table Tennis:** This sport is now inclusive of athletes with diverse impairments, competing in singles and doubles format.
17. **Para Taekwondo:** Athletes with upper limb impairments compete to score points against their opponents’ torso.
18. **Para Triathlon:** Events consist of swimming, cycling, and running, with accommodations for various classes of athletes.
19. **Wheelchair Basketball:** Played on standard basketball courts, athletes must skillfully maneuver their wheelchairs while adhering to specific rules.
20. **Wheelchair Fencing:** Participants compete in various fencing styles while secured in a special frame to ensure proximity to their opponents.
21. **Wheelchair Rugby:** A high-contact sport that combines elements of rugby and basketball for players with paralysis.
22. **Wheelchair Tennis:** Athletes with various impairments compete in singles and doubles, with the allowance of up to two bounces of the ball before returning.
In addition to the summer games, the Winter Paralympics feature sports such as Para alpine skiing, Para nordic skiing, Para sled hockey, Para snowboard, and Wheelchair curling.
Mark your calendars for the Opening Ceremony on August 28, 2024, with competitions officially commencing on August 29. Those wishing to follow the events can stream the performance live on Peacock. The Paralympics stand as a testament to the dedication and excellence of athletes with disabilities, fostering a spirit of inclusion and competition on a world stage.
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