Paralympian who?

The year was 1948.

Sir Ludwig Guttman, a physician from England, had held an archery competition as part of a rehabilitation programme for war veterans with spinal cord injuries. What he did not expect was how it would end up evolving into an international competition and what we now recognise as the Paralympic Games.

Today, the Games serve as a way to “change attitudes, breakdown barriers of inequality and create more opportunities for persons with disabilities”, with media representation being at the heart of the matter. What does it mean to represent Paralympians as athletes first, to remove stereotypes, and to use informative and multidimensional frames?

With the highest estimated global viewership to date, at 4.25 billion total viewers, the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics have the ability to spark discussions about disability, but this is not enough.

Besides exploring how the media can represent Paralympians best in order for us to truly rethink our attitudes towards disabilities, we must go beyond just these two weeks to make sure real changes can be made for those around us living with disabilities.