1D The Paralympic Games

A Answer the questions about disability, then discuss your answers in pairs.
1 Do you have a physical disability or do you know anyone who has?
2 In what ways is a physically disabled person’s life different to an able-bodied person’s life?
3 How are disabled people treated in your country?
4 Do you think people have changed the way they see disability in recent years?

B Read the text and answer the questions below.

If it weren’t for a Jewish neurosurgeon in a British hospital, the Paralympics might not exist.
Dr Ludwig Guttmann founded the National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville Hospital,
dealing primarily with military casualties from World War II. He was a strong advocate of using
sports therapy to rehabilitate and enhance the quality of life for these military veterans.
Based upon his success in this field, Guttmann was inspired to develop an event to
demonstrate that sport can be accessible to all people. The result was the first International
Wheelchair Games, which took place in 1948 – the same year as the Olympics came to London.
In 1948 this event consisted of two teams of British paraplegics competing at archery, but in
1952 Dutch athletes joined the event and an international competition was born. The event in
Rome in 1960 is generally considered to be the first Paralympic Games, taking place after that
year’s Olympics and involving 400 athletes representing 23 nations in eight different sports.
The Summer Paralympic Games are now the second largest sporting event in the world. At
the 2012 Paralympics, over 4,000 athletes from 150 countries took part and 20 different sports were represented. Not
only has the variety of sports increased dramatically but the range of disability now further reflects Guttmann’s ethos
of inclusivity, with five major classifications of athletes: people with visual impairments, amputee athletes, people with
cerebral palsy, people with spinal cord injuries and Les Autres – athletes with a physical disability that are not included in
the categories already mentioned.
Mandeville, one of the official mascots for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, was named in honour of Stoke
Mandeville Hospital’s contribution to Paralympic sports, which would no doubt have pleased Dr Guttman greatly. The
strong connection between the Olympics and Paralympics would also be a source of satisfaction as, today, they are held
within two weeks of each other using the same venues and the same organising committee.
Ludwig Guttmann died in 1980, but his vision of sport for athletes with disabilities has been continued by many dedicated
people around the world. While the rehabilitative benefit of sport in the lives of those with disabilities remains an
important aspect, the Paralympics have moved far beyond this initial aim. What we see now is the power of Paralympic
athletes to inspire everyone. The athletic talents of competitors with disabilities are becoming recognised worldwide, just
as Dr. Guttmann would have wished. And the Paralympic values of courage, determination, inspiration and equality apply
to all, whether able-bodied or disabled.

1 Who is/was Dr Ludwig Guttmann?

2 What was his experience of disabled sport?

3 Did the Paralympic Games start in 1948 or 1960?

Solutions 2nd edition  Advanced classroom activity © Oxford University Press • Photocopiable
 1D The Paralympic Games

4 How many sports were represented at the 1960 Paralympic games?

5 How many athletes competed at Paralympics 2012 and how many categories of disability are there?

6 What are the four Paralympic values?

7 What is the origin of the name Mandeville given to the 2012 Paralympic Mascot?

8 To what extent are the Olympic and Paralympic Games connected?

Solutions 2nd edition  Advanced classroom activity © Oxford University Press • Photocopiable
 1D The Paralympic Games

Aims  To react to a text

Time  15 minutes
Materials  1 handout for each student
• Give each student a copy of the handout and ask them to do
task A with a partner.
• Students read the text and answer the questions. Check
answers as a class.
Suggested answers
1 Dr Guttmann was a Jewish neurosurgeon who founded the
National Spinal Injuries Centre and advocated sports therapy.
2 He used sports therapy for rehabilitation.
3 The Paralympic Games started in 1960. In 1948 Dr Guttman
held the first International Wheelchair Games.
4 8 sports
5 over 4,000, 5 categories of disability
6 courage, determination, inspiration and equality
7 Mandeville is named after Stoke Mandeville Hospital.
8 They are held within two weeks of each other, same venues,
same organising committee.
• Before students do task C encourage them to brainstorm ideas.
Have they ever seen the Paralympic Games on TV? Do they
know of any paralympic athletes?
• Working in pairs students review each other’s questions and
do task D. Monitor carefully, after 5 minutes elicit some of the
questions and answers.
• For a stronger class this activity could be done as a role-play.

Solutions 2nd edition  Advanced classroom activity © Oxford University Press • Photocopiable