Experience with People with Disabilities

 Special Olympics with Paralympics The joining of these two will also offer a higher level of competition, and recognition for the athletes. With more athletes competing, and higher levels of competition, the athletes will experience a more competitive environment. The athletes will receive more recognition for their hard work and dedication. Special Olympic athletes would also have more resources, and developmental pathways, that are not readily available. I believe athletes with intellectual disabilities should be allowed to compete in Paralympics competitions. As stated above it is in alignment with both the Paralympics, and Special Olympics core values. There are some limitations to this however. Athletes should continue to have classifications according to their skill level, and their disabilities. This will ensure that athletes have fair competition against similarly skilled athletes. Creating a fair competition when examining athletes with different disabilities might be d...

 Ban of Athletes The IPC’s decision to ban Russian, and Belarusian athletes in recent Paralympic Games has sparked some debate. The decision was made following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and aims to uphold the IPC's core values of promoting peace, fair play, and political neutrality.​ Athletes from these countries are still able to compete just not as a representative of their country. Instead they must compete as “neutrals”, and will be represented by the Paralympic flag and anthem.  Not only do I believe this is the right decision by the IPC, I believe it is in full alignment with their values. The IPC’s mission statement is “to enable Paralympic athletes to achieve sporting excellence and inspire and excite the world". (IPC, 2014). This is without the nuisance of geopolitical issues. The IPC's decision had to reflect neutrality, while still responding to a significant issue. Not allowing athletes to compete as Russian or Belarusian athletes ackno...

     While inclusivity and competition is the main idea, and beliefs behind the Paralympics, it is important to have classification systems to make sure the competition is fair. Every sport has different physical demands that some athletes might have difficulty with. If athletes have a much easier time competing in a sport compared to another athlete, it might create an unfair event, and could cause other less athletes to not be as involved in the competition. An athlete could feel left out, and discouraged, when in an environment where they are not actively involved in the competition. The Paralympics should be inclusive to everyone, that has become a main belief, and value of the Paralympics, and Special Olympics (Barr, 2025). The four core values of the Paralympics are determination, equality, inspiration and courage. Not being inclusive to all would not be in accordance with their core values. It’s important with this inclusivity to have a strong classification s...

 Society's Limitations I believe that to better educate others about disabilities, the key is just exposure. Lots of people know about disabilities, but not in depth. People do not fully understand what disabilities are, how they affect the disabled, and how it is a part of the disabled person’s life. People see someone with a disability, and immediately will feel sorry for the person. People don’t know how to approach, or even talk to people with disabilities. I believe this can be solved through education. While children are growing up they can be insensitive, and harsh, making it difficult for children with disabilities to be friends with them. I believe that educating people from a young age will give them enough experience, and understanding of disabilities. As of 2014, there were 1 billion people with disabilities in the world, as the population has continued to increase the number of people with disabilities has increased with it (Disability and The Body). There is no reason...

 Kyle Jones Adaptive Technology in Sports       Technology continues to advance in all fields, whether it's software development, mechanical engineering, renewable energy, or prosthetics, and health technology. With this athletes are gaining access to new, and improving technology, to overall improve their performance. Recently athletes have gained access to all sorts of technology dedicated to improving their performance, and recovery. These technologies can be through tracking their performance, giving different types of therapy for recovery, or providing better support during strenuous activities. Another type of technology athletes might use is adaptive technology. For disabled athletes adaptive technology are things like prosthetics, such as running blades. Running blades are prosthetics for the lower limbs, designed to maximize the runner's capabilities. Running blades, unlike most prosthetics, do not try to mimic human bones, rather mimicking the action, and j...

  Increasing Media Coverage Kyle Jones     To increase media coverage of the Paralympics, I would start with having more commercials, and ads throughout the year, not just when it is getting close to the event. Since the Paralympics happens every four years, commercials would begin some time after the last one, but still a couple of years out from the next. As time passes, and we get closer to the event the ads will become more frequent. This will build anticipation, and almost a countdown until the event. Having the commercials air on sports related channels. This will grab the attention of people who are already invested in sports. Another place to have ads are on popular sports talk shows. For example the "Pat McAfee Show", is one of the most entertaining, and popular sports talk shows. If this talk show or similar, were to talk about the upcoming Paralympics, there would be much more people interested in watching. Having popular people who are involved in sports using...