The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the Games of the Paralympiad, is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, have been held shortly after the corresponding Olympic Games. All Paralympic Games are governed by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
The Paralympic sports comprise all the sports contested in the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. As of 2020, the Summer Paralympics included 22 sports and 539 medal events, and the Winter Paralympics include 5 sports and disciplines and about 80 events. The number and kinds of events may change from one Paralympic Games to another.
The Summer Paralympics, also known as the Games of the Paralympiad, are an international multi-sport event where athletes with physical disabilities compete. This includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and cerebral palsy. The Paralympic Games are held every four years, organized by the International Paralympic Committee. Medals are awarded in every event, with gold medals for first place, silver for second and bronze for third, a tradition that the Olympic Games started in 1904.
The Winter Paralympic Games is an international multi-sport event where athletes with physical disabilities compete in snow and ice sports. The event includes athletes with mobility impairments, amputations, blindness, and cerebral palsy. The Winter Paralympic Games are held every four years directly following the Winter Olympic Games and hosted in the same city. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) oversees the Games. Medals are awarded in each event: with gold for first place, silver for second, and bronze for third, following the tradition that the Olympic Games began in 1904.
Australia has participated officially in every Paralympic Games since its inauguration in 1960 with the exception of the 1976 Winter Paralympics.
Naomi Alejandra Soazo Boccardo is a visually impaired Venezuelan judoka. She competed in a number of international events, such as the International Blind Sports Federation World Championships, but is best known for being the only Venezuelan, in any sport, to have won a gold medal at the Paralympic Games.
Para-swimming classification is a function-based classification system designed to allow for fair competition in disability swimming. The classes are prefixed with "S" for freestyle, butterfly and backstroke events, "SB" for breaststroke and "SM" for individual medley events. Swimmers with physical disabilities are divided into ten classes based on their degree of functional disability: S1, S2, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8, S9 and S10. The lower number indicates a greater degree of impairment. Those with visual impairments are placed in classes S11, S12 and S13. Class S15 is for athletes with hearing loss. Additional classes may be reserved for swimmers with intellectual impairment: S14, S18 for swimmers with Down Syndrome or class-S14 intellectual impairment combined with a physical impairment, and S19 for swimmers with autism.
Para judo is an adaptation of the Japanese martial art of judo for visually impaired competitors. The rules of the sport are only slightly different from regular judo competitions. It has been part of the Summer Paralympics program since 1988 for men and 2004 for women.
The United States competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7 September to 18 September 2016. The first places the team qualified were for three athletes in sailing events. They also qualified athletes in archery, goalball, shooting, swimming, and wheelchair basketball.
The Para Judo competition of the 2016 Summer Paralympics was held in Hall 3 at the Carioca Arena inside the Olympic Training Center in Barra cluster between 8 and 10 September. There were 13 events, corresponding to seven weight classes for men and six for women, and a total of 132 athletes will compete. At the Paralympics, judo is contested by visually impaired athletes.
Algeria competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7 to 18 September 2016.
Mexico participated at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7 to 18 September 2016. The country sent a 71-member delegation to the Games.
Uzbekistan competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7 to 18 September 2016.
Mesme Taşbağ is a Turkish visually impaired judoka competing in the heavyweight (+70 kg) division. She is a physician by profession.
Lenia Fabiola Ruvalcaba Álvarez is a Mexican visually-impaired judoka. Competing in the 70 kg division she won a silver medal at the 2008 Paralympics and a gold at the 2016 Rio Games. Ruvalcaba also took part in regular judo competitions and won a team bronze medal at the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games. In 2011, she participated both at the Pan American and Parapan American Games.
Utkirjon Nigmatov is an Uzbek judoka and Paralympian competing in the weight category up to 66 kg. He is the champion of the 2016 Summer Paralympic Games, a medalist in World Championships, winner of the Summer Para Asian Games, and a medalist in World Cup and Grand Prix events in Para Judo.
Ramona Brussig is a German judoka and two-time gold medal winner in Paralympic competition.
Alana Martins Maldonado is a visually impaired Brazilian Paralympic judoka. She won gold medals in Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 She also represented Brazil at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and she won the silver medal in the women's 70 kg event.
Dmytro Solovey is a visually impaired Ukrainian Paralympic judoka. He represented Ukraine at the Summer Paralympics in 2012, 2016 and 2021, winning two medals: the gold medal in the men's 73 kg event in 2012 and the silver medal in the men's 73 kg event in 2016.
Aramitsu Kitazono is a Japanese visually impaired Paralympic judoka. He made his first Paralympic appearance during the 2012 Summer Paralympics. He was set to represent Japan at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in the judoka competition but had to withdraw from the event after being hit by a self driving bus.
