The Deaflympics also known as Deaflympiad are a periodic series of multi-sport events sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at which Deaf athletes compete at an elite level. Unlike the athletes in other IOC-sanctioned events, athletes cannot be guided by sounds. The games have been organized by the Comité International des Sports des Sourds since the first event in 1924.
The 2011 Asian Winter Games was a multi-sport event that was held in Astana and Almaty, Kazakhstan, that began on January 30, 2011, and ended on February 6, 2011. It was the first time that Kazakhstan hosted such a large event since independence from the Soviet Union. The documents for the hosting city were signed in Kuwait on March 4, 2006.
Winter Universiade 2017, the XXVIII Winter Universiade, was a multi-sport winter event which took place in Almaty, Kazakhstan from 29 January to 8 February 2017. On 29 November 2011, FISU announced that Winter Universiade 2017 would be hosted in Almaty.
The First International Silent Games, or First International Games for the Deaf, now referred to retroactively as the 1924 Summer Deaflympics, were the inaugural edition of the Deaflympics. The Games were held in Paris, France, from 10 to 17 August 1924, as an equivalent to the Olympic Games for deaf athletes. They were organised on the initiative of deaf Frenchman Eugène Rubens-Alcais, who, just after the Games, co-founded the Comité International des Sports des Sourds with other "deaf sporting leaders". The 1924 Games were "the first games ever" for athletes with a disability, preceding the World Wheelchair and Amputee Games in 1948, which became the Paralympic Games in 1960 but which did not include events for deaf athletes.
A number of deaf people have competed in the modern Olympic Games, with the earliest known being Carlo Orlandi, an Italian boxer who competed in the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam.
The 2017 Summer Deaflympics, officially known as the 23rd Summer Deaflympics, is an international multi-sport event that took place in Samsun, Turkey from July 18 to July 30, 2017. 3,148 athletes from 97 countries competed in 18 sports with 21 disciplines. 86 records were broken with 54 being world records and 32 being Deaflympics records.
Rebecca Meyers is a Paralympic swimmer of the United States. She won three gold and one silver medals in Rio 2016. She was also a member of the 2012 Paralympic Team, and won a silver and bronze in London. Rebecca Meyers has also competed at the 2009 Summer Deaflympics which was held in Taiwan, which is also her only appearance at the Deaflympics. She also clinched a bronze medal in the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay event in the 2009 Summer Deaflympics.
Kazakhstan competed in the 2017 Asian Winter Games in Sapporo and Obihiro, Japan from February 19 to 26. Kazakhstan competed in all five sports. The team consists of 116 athletes and was announced on January 17.
Rea Hraski is a Croatian alpine skier. She represented Croatia at the 2007 Winter Deaflympics, the 2015 Winter Deaflympics and the 2019 Winter Deaflympics.
The 2019 Winter Deaflympics, officially known as the 19th Winter Deaflympics or XIX Winter Deaflympics, was the 19th edition of the Winter Deaflympics, and took place between the 12–21 December in Sondrio Province in Northern Italy. The opening ceremony was held in Sondrio on 12 December and curling competition began a day prior to the start of the Winter Deaflympics. Sporting events apart from curling commenced on 13 December.
The 2021 Summer Deaflympics, officially known as the 24th Summer Deaflympics, was the international multi-sport event held in Caxias do Sul, Brazil, as the main host city from 1 May to 15 May 2022. In addition to Caxias, there are events scheduled for the neighboring cities of Farroupilha and Flores da Cunha. On April 12, 2022, CISS has announced that due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian athletes were barred from competing in Caxias do Sul, and in the same press release it was also announced that the bowling tournament was scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, during October 20–30, 2022.
The chess competition was held at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics between 13 and 20 December 2019 at Hotel Aurora except on 18 December. The chess competition which was chosen as a sport being part of the multi-sport event was an unprecedented move and it made its debut at this edition of the Winter Deaflympics.
Canada competed at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics which were held in Valtellina and Valchiavenna, Italy, from December 12 to 21, 2019. Canada was one of the 34 nations to compete at the multi-sport event. This was the nation's 15th appearance at the Winter Deaflympics, having regularly participated at the event since making its debut in 1953.
The United States competed at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics which was held in Valtellina and Valchiavenna, Italy, from December 12 to 21, 2019. The United States was one of the 34 nations to compete at the multi-sport event. This was the nation's 12th appearance at the Winter Deaflympics, having regularly participated at the event since making its debut in 1967. 42 athletes represented the United States at the Deaflympics in all six sporting events including chess, cross-country skiing, curling, ice hockey, alpine skiing, and snowboarding.
Ukraine competed at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics held between 12 and 21 December 2019 in Province of Sondrio in Northern Italy. Most medals were won in cross-country skiing and the country finished in 3rd place in the medal table with a total of four gold medals, four silver medals and three bronze medals.
Russia competed at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics held between 12 and 21 December 2019 in Province of Sondrio in Northern Italy. Russian competitors won medals in each of the sports contested at the games and the country finished in 1st place in the medal table.
The ice hockey competition was one of the events held at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics.
Finland competed at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics held between 12 and 21 December 2019 in Province of Sondrio in Northern Italy. The country won two silver medals and one bronze medal and the country finished in 10th place in the medal table.
China competed at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics held between 12 and 21 December 2019 in Sondrio Province in Northern Italy. The country finished in 6th place in the medal table with a total of two gold medals and two bronze medals.
Croatia competed at the 2019 Winter Deaflympics held between 12 and 21 December 2019 in Province of Sondrio in Northern Italy. The country won three bronze medals and the country finished in 15th place in the medal table.
