Written by Uthara Menon, a grade 4 student.

The Paralympics 2020, postponed to 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, commenced on the 25th of August 2021. It featured more than 4,400 athletes who participated and competed from various parts of the world in different events.

Torch Relay

The torch relay routes were already announced in November 2019. The Heritage Flame celebration was held in Stoke Mandeville. The rest of the flame lighting festivals were to be held in  43 prefectures of Japan.

New sports included

In January 2014, IPC began accepting requests for new sports to be added to the Paralympic games. Six of the sports were requested by the people which included:  amputee football, badminton, power hockey, powerchair football, and taekwondo. New rules were framed for these sports.

Medals

Now comes the fun part of the medals. The Medal designs for the Paralympics were exhibited on August 2 019. The fun fact about the Medals at the Olympics and the Paralympics is that the gold medals weren’t gold! They are silver medals coated with gold! The medals feature a design inspired by traditional folding hand fans to symbolize the shared experience of the Paralympics.

Covid impact

Covid, the pandemic compelled the Summer Olympics to be held behind closed doors without the public.  The epidemic brought a state of emergency to Japan, with the daily cases rising to over 4000.

Games

The 2020 Summer Paralympics featured 539 events in 22 sports. Badminton and taekwondo made their Paralympic debut in Tokyo. Classifications were added or realigned in other sports; canoe, shooting, table tennis, track cycling, and wheelchair fencing which saw increases in the number of medal events held, and a reduction in Athletics and swimming.

Also read: Facts and History of Hockey Game

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