Is there any concern that the ID athletes that compete in the Paralympics will become first class citizens, making the ones still competing in the SO ‘second class citizens’ or lesser in some way?

I know it is a possibility because I get asked for SO athlete sponsorships all the time, and some companies will care which event the athlete is taking part in. So opportunity and funding could begin to follow some and not others based on this…

I wonder if splitting off the most competitive events to the Paralympics will weaken the Special Olympics as the sports “move out” or “move up” depending on how you view it… or maybe, as a participation based thing, it might not matter to the Special Olympics.

Something to consider is that in the world of people with a “disability” a great majority of the “disabled” population of the world is intellectually impaired.

The stereotype of having a physical impairment also including an intellectual impairment is a huge challenge. Many felt that the Paralympic Games helped break down this stereotype and now with the reinclusion of ID Athletes we will slip backward. I hope this is not the case and I further believe that we, the Athletes, need to lead the effort. Building a wall between us and them is not the solution. I believe we will be much stronger together where we can speak to everyone’s ability and admire the individual strength it takes to overcome our impairment to compete at our very best.

In all seriousness though I think they should ban bazookas in biathlon. It doesn’t seem like they are in the best interest of the sport.

First of all – you are right that there is a push within the Special Olympics to promote a more competitive environment (at least in some circumstances – I don’t think they mean they will adopt a competitive/performance driven model at all levels). Here is a link to Special Olympics discussing the issue – but from my read it sounds like the organization is somewhat divided on the issue. The way it is worded it sounds like the push to a more competitive model is coming from a few committees within the SO organization who want to promote the ‘credibility’ of SO competitions in order to attract partners/sponsors. (hmm… now where have we heard that before?) I have not been able to find out if they keep records for SO events. http://www.specialolympics.org/News_and_Stories/Stories2011/Merging_Sports_and_Health.aspx

The other point that i would like to make is ATHLETES WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES DO PARTICIPATE IN THE PARALYMPIC GAMES! Events for athletes with an intellectual disability have been part of the IPC since the late 80s right up until the 2000 Paralympic Games. At the 2000 Paralympics there was an issue with teams ‘cheating’ – they had athletes participating who did not actually have intellectual impairments. The IPCs response was to cancel all future events for athletes with IDs until a better system of classification could be developed (I think the issue was that countries were responsible for classifying their own athletes and some countries were a little medal hungry… but the issue was with the classification process – it wasn’t that the IPC felt athletes with ID didn’t belong in the Paralympics). Recently the IPC revised the classification procedures and reinstated events for athletes with intellectual disabilities. At London 2012 there are events for athletes with IDs in athletics (shot put, 1500m and long jump – class 20), swimming (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke – class 14) and table tennis (singles – class 11). The rumour is that, provided all goes well and the classification system holds up, rowing and cross-country skiing are the next sports that will include athletes with an ID.

What I can’t find out is this – is Canada sending any athletes with an ID to London? Given that several of the people commenting and reading this blog are involved in swimming and athletics (and headed to the London Paralympics) and no one has mentioned athletes with an ID I am guessing not… I just sent out a few emails trying to find out for sure. If anyone has any insights I would love to hear them. But I am on Cross-Country Canada’s para-nordic development committee and I haven’t heard a word – I certainly haven’t been told to start recruiting/identifying athletes with an ID for future Paralympic Games.

I personally would like to see athletes with an intellectual disability included in the Paralympic Games. Not all athletes with an ID – I suspect many have no interest in competition and are in sport because of the opportunities it provides for socializing and general physical and mental well-being. But I do think there are some athletes with intellectual disabilities out there that would thrive in a competitive environment and are frustrated with the lack of high performance sport opportunities available to them within the Special Olympics model. But I also recognize that I am coming at this topic from a much different perspective than Joan and Courtney – I don’t have a physical disability and I don’t have that experience that Joan talks about where people frequently assume she has a cognitive impairment in addition to a physical impairment. I suppose that if I constantly had to explain to people the difference between the Paralympics and the Special Olympics I would be a little defensive as well – and probably more inclined to do everything I could to distinguish between the two movements.

And for comic relief – this one is for you Josh – http://youtu.be/D5tpJc7CYzs

I would like to hear from a Special Olympics expert on this post, because I have heard that Special Olympic events are competitive at times. I would like to know if there are records and results kept. As far as I can see, the difference is that the Special Olympic movement encourages and celebrates process and participation while other sport movements encourage and celebrate results. They are all or nothing, and this is why people are drawn to them.

What makes Olympic, Paralympic and other elite sport so exciting is the fact that athletes give everything – they sacrifice their bodies and lives for the chance not to lose. The ever present chance of crushing defeat is what fuels elite athletes to achieve excellence in all areas of human existence. Many Paralympians go on to become business, political and community leaders – where the medals they won mean nothing but the transferable skills of being a high performance athlete are everything.

This is where I disagree with Larry who says briefly that ego driven behaviour in sport is human nature, but should be overcome. Sport helps transform ego driven behaviour into collective good, within a set of rules. Athletes are not killing each other to win (I especially admire Olympic biathletes who ski with rifles on their backs but refrain from picking each other off throughout the race!). We recognise that the competitive framework is the best way to inspire achievement in sport. The same applies to varying degrees in school, work and life. Empathy, cooperation, respect, teamwork and love are important to support achievements, but if these values were considered appropriate outcomes of scientific studies or engineering projects, our world would be a different and likely barbaric place.

Although I recently made the London 2012 Paralympic Team, I missed qualifying for Beijing 2008 by one point at the 2007 World Championships. I was devastated. Losses like this, along with glorious wins and multi-medal performances are what make the Paralympic brand so exciting, and why the world tunes in.

I think Paralympians are uncomfortable with being thought of as Special Olympians because we wrestle with the thought of losing at every training session. Our goal is to perform at an optimum level so that we can win. When we lose though, we lose. We need to work harder next time and although a hug from our loved ones might soften the blow, it does not equal success.

I suspect for many Special Olympians the same desire burns. In the end though, not only Olympic, Paralympic and Special Olympic champions have the respect of their communities. Those who gave their absolute all are pretty inspiring too.