From small beginnings
T he Olympic Games may have started out as a celebration of the human physique but the Paralympics began as a celebration of the human spirit in overcoming physical injury.
In 1948, a small gathering of World War II British veterans with spinal cord injuries was held to coincide with the London Olympics. It was dubbed the Wheelchair Games.
The gathering was the brainchild of Dr Ludwig Guttman and was the start of something much bigger. It was repeated in 1952, with Dutch veterans joining the British and, in 1960, the competition was extended beyond war veterans to form the first official Paralympic Games.
That event had 400 wheelchair-bound athletes from 23 countries and kick-started an international movement that has grown in all directions.
In 1962, a sole New Zealand athlete attended the British Commonwealth Paraplegic Games in Western Australia but, just six years later, 15 Kiwis attended the 1968 Summer Paralympics in Israel and they returned with one gold, two silver and one bronze medal.
At the London 2012 Paralympics, a Kiwi team of 23 Paralympians lifted 17 medals in seven sports. By far the stand-out performer was swimmer Sophie Pascoe, who hauled in three gold and three silver medals.
The Brazil 2016 event will mark the 15th Summer Paralympics and will include up to 4350 Paralympians from 160 countries in 22 sports.