The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games will be held between 28 August and 8 September, 2024, and comprises 22 events.
Scheduled sports for 2024
Blind Football: Blind football is a modified version of regular football, designed for athletes with vision impairment. It involves using an audible ball and is played between two teams, each consisting of four blind players and one sighted or visually impaired goalkeeper. Additionally, there is a guide positioned behind the opponent’s goal to provide direction to players during shooting.
Boccia: Boccia is a sport for athletes with significant physical impairments affecting all four limbs. Competitors participate in singles, pairs, and team events. Played indoors, boccia requires precise muscle control and accuracy. Athletes, competing in wheelchairs, aim to propel leather balls as close as possible to a smaller target ball known as the ‘jack’.
Goalball: Goalball is an indoor team sport designed for athletes with vision impairment. The objective is to roll the ball into the opponent’s goal while defenders try to block it using their bodies. Bells inside the ball provide auditory cues to players about its direction.
Para-Archery: At the Paralympic Games, Para-Archery is open to athletes with physical impairments, featuring standing and wheelchair events. Competitors shoot arrows at a target marked with scoring zones, aiming to hit the centre from 70 metres.
Para-Athletics: Para-athletics comprises Track and Field events, welcoming athletes with physical, intellectual, or vision impairment.
Para-Badminton: Open to athletes with physical impairments, Para-badminton includes singles, doubles, and mixed doubles events, where players can compete either standing or in wheelchairs.
Para-Canoe: Para-canoe races are contested by athletes with physical impairments using two types of boats: kayak (K) and va’a (V). Individual races cover 200 metres.
Para-Cycling: Para-cycling, divided into track and road events, is open to athletes with physical or visual impairments. In road cycling, athletes use various equipment depending on their impairment: tandem bikes, standard bikes, three-wheeled trikes, or handcycles. Track cycling takes place in a velodrome and is for athletes using tandem or standard bicycles.
Para-Equestrian: Para-equestrian events include Dressage competitions, where individual riders perform set movements and freestyle routines to music. Teams also compete in a synchronised Team Test.
Para-Judo: Open to athletes with vision impairment, Para-judo features seven weight categories for men and six for women, requiring a balance of attack and defence.
Para-Powerlifting: Para-powerlifting focuses on upper body strength, with bench press as the contested discipline at the Paralympic Games. Athletes compete in various weight classes.
Para-Rowing: Athletes with impairments compete in single sculls, double sculls, or coxed fours, depending on their level of impairment.
Para-Shooting: Para-shooting includes rifle and pistol events, with opportunities in Para-trap for athletes with physical impairment and rifle for those with visual impairment.
Para-Swimming: Para-swimming follows standard rules with modifications, such as optional platform starts and the use of signals for swimmers with vision impairment. No prostheses or assistive devices are permitted in the water.
Para-Table Tennis: Open to athletes with physical or intellectual impairment, Para-table tennis includes standing and sitting (wheelchair) events, both individual and team-based.
Para-Taekwondo: Athletes compete in sparring disciplines, with separate competitions for males and females.
Para-Triathlon: Athletes race over swimming, cycling, and running disciplines, with equipment adaptations depending on classification.
Sitting Volleyball: Sitting volleyball is played on a smaller court with a lower net, and teams consist of mixed classes in male and female events. At all times during the event, an athlete’s pelvis must be touching the ground and service blocks are allowed.
Wheelchair Basketball: Players are assigned point values based on their impairment level, and teams must not exceed a total of 14.0 points on the court at any time.
Wheelchair Fencing: Open to athletes with physical impairment, wheelchair fencing includes individual and team events, using foil, épée, and sabre weapons. While athletes compete in wheelchairs that are fastened to the floor, the competition is just as fast-paced as in fencing for athletes without impairments.
Wheelchair Rugby: An intense, contact team sport, wheelchair rugby is played in eight-minute quarters by athletes with significant impairments affecting their arms and legs.
Wheelchair Tennis: Players compete in singles and doubles events, using standard doubles court dimensions and allowing the ball to bounce twice before returning it.
As the Paris Paralympic Games approach, 20 Australian para athletes are gearing up for their final international competition before the big event. They’ll be participating in the 2024 World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan from May 17th to 25th. This championship is a crucial opportunity for Australia’s best para athletes to showcase their talents and prepare for the Paralympic Games.
Reigning world and Paralympic champion James Turner had this to say about the event: “This season in Australia has given me a lot of confidence in myself, my coach and all the support that I have around me and I know I am ready for what’s to come in Kobe. Kobe is the testing ground of what I will use to prepare myself for Paris. I’d like to run well, execute a well-planned race and really set myself up so that I know that it’s all systems go when we travel to the Paralympics later this year.”
Action Trackchair Australia sends its best wishes to all the athletes competing in both Kobe and Paris. Good luck to everyone! To stay updated on the 2024 Paralympics, check out the Paralympics Australia website. There, you can find all the latest news about the event and learn how you can get involved. Let’s support these amazing athletes as they inspire us with their talents and determination!
