The 2004 Summer Paralympics, the 12th Summer Paralympic Games, were a major international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the International Paralympic Committee, held in Athens, Greece from 17 to 28 September 2004. 3,808 athletes from 136 countries participated. During these games 304 World Records were broken with 448 Paralympic Games Records being broken across 19 different sports. 8,863 volunteers worked along the Organizing Committee.
Palestine participated in the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Greece. Palestine was represented by two athletes: Husam Azzam, who had won a bronze medal in the shot put in the previous Games, and Mohammed Fannouna, competing in the long jump and javelin events.
One male and one female athlete from Palestine participated in the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney, Australia. It was the first Palestinian Territories participation in the Paralympic Games. Husam Azzam won Palestine's only medal: a bronze in the shot put.
The State of Palestine compete as Palestine at the Paralympic Games. Their first participation came at the Sydney Paralympics in 2000, where Husam Azzam won bronze in the shot put event. Palestinian athletes have won three Paralympic medals to date: a silver and two bronze.
Afghanistan first competed at the Paralympic Games during the 1996 Summer Paralympics in Atlanta, where it was represented by cyclists Gul Afzal and Zabet Khan.
Chiang Chih-chung is a Taiwanese javelin thrower. He is Chinese Taipei's most successful representative at the Paralympic Games, having won two gold medals, in 2000 and 2004. He competes in the F13 category for athletes with visual disabilities. He set a world record at the Sydney Games with a throw of 57.28 metres, before setting a new world record in Athens with a throw of 59.38 metres.
Heidi Andreasen is a Faroese swimmer.
José Armando Sayovo is an Angolan Paralympic track and field athlete.
So Wa Wai is a retired athlete from Hong Kong who has competed in the Paralympic Games on five occasions, winning 12 medals. So Wa Wai is called the "Wonder Boy" by the people in Hong Kong.
Australia has participated officially in every Paralympic Games since its inauguration in 1960 except for the 1976 Winter Paralympics.
The United States sent a delegation to compete at the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Greece. A total of 235 U.S. competitors took part in 18 sports; the only sport Americans did not compete in was soccer 5-a-side. The United States finished fourth in the gold and overall medal count, behind China, Great Britain and Canada.
Greece, the birthplace of the Ancient Olympic Games that hosted the inaugural 1896 Summer Olympics, did not compete in the Summer Paralympics until 1976 and in the Winter Paralympics until 2002, but since then the Greeks have taken part in every edition of both events. Although the Greek delegation traditionally enters first during the parade of nations at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, this tradition does not apply to the Paralympics, where Greece enters within alphabetical order. The National Paralympic Committee for Greece is the Hellenic Paralympic Committee.
El Salvador first competed in the Paralympic Games at the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney, Australia. It has participated in the Summer Paralympic Games every four years since that time. El Salvador has never taken part in the Winter Paralympics, and until Tokyo 2020, no Salvadorian had won a Paralympic medal. In 2021, Herbert Aceituno became the first athlete to win a medal, earning bronze in powerlifting at the 59 kg category.
Ukraine made its Paralympic Games début at the 1996 Summer Paralympics in Atlanta, with thirty athletes competing in archery, track and field, powerlifting, swimming, and sitting volleyball. Vasyl Lishchynskyy won Ukraine's first Paralympic gold medal, in the shot put, and Ukrainians also won four silver medals and two bronze. Ukrainians had previously participated within the Soviet Union's delegation in 1988, and as part of the Unified Team in 1992. Ukraine, following its independence from the Soviet Union, missed out on the 1994 Winter Games, but made its Winter Paralympics début at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. Ukraine has competed at every edition of the Summer and Winter Games since then and have done so with remarkable success.
Eva Berná is a Paralympian athlete from the Czech Republic competing mainly in category F37 shot put events.
Thierry Cibone is a Paralympic athlete competing in throwing events. He lives in New Caledonia and represents France in international competition. He has cerebral palsy.
Hamish Anderson MacDonald, OAM is an Australian Paralympic athlete. He was born in Melbourne and lives in Canberra. He has cerebral palsy. His achievements and advocacy have made him one of Australia's most respected Paralympians.
The Palestinian Territories competed as Palestine at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, United Kingdom, from August 29 to September 9.
Palestine sent a delegation to compete at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7–18 September 2016. This was the fifth time they had taken part in a Paralympic Games after its debut sixteen years prior at the 2000 Summer Paralympics. Palestine sent one athlete to Rio de Janeiro shot put thrower Husam Azzam, who was the flag bearer for Palestine at the parade of nations during the opening ceremony. He did not win his third Paralympic medal because he ranked eighth out of ten athletes with a throw of 6.34 metres in the men's shot put F53 competition.
Aleš Kisý is a Czech Paralympic athlete. He has represented Czech Republic at the Paralympics on five occasions in 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020.
