Women at the Paralympic Games: history, records and Brazilian athletes
11/11/24
Overcoming, resilience and achievements that go beyond medals, that's what sums up the history of women in the Paralympics. Since the Paralympic Games began in Rome in 1960, the path towards the inclusion of female athletes in sport has undergone a long process of transformation.
Women, who initially represented a minority at the Games, now play a leading role, breaking records and increasing the visibility of adapted sport. It wasn't an easy achievement and it's worth understanding the milestones of the Paralympic Games and how it all came about.
History of the Paralympic Games
Like the Olympics, the Paralympics take place every four years. Aimed at people with special needs, it includes disciplines that allow athletes with different types of disabilities to compete. The Paralympic Games are attended by athletes with motor disabilities, amputees, the blind, as well as people with cerebral palsy and mental disabilities.
Sports practices by people with disabilities have been documented on the European continent since the end of the 19th century, but it was only after the Second World War that the professionalization of competition between people with functional diversity emerged, and so the history of the Paralympics was born.
Through the Spinal Injuries Center, in a study led by Ludwig Guttmann, a German doctor who fled his native country to the UK during the Nazi government, sport was introduced as a form of treatment to rehabilitate patients. In 1948, this program started an annual competition, the Stoke Mandeville Games. This name is a reference to the location of the rehabilitation center, the village of Stoke Mandeville in England.
In 1952, it welcomed foreign athletes for the first time and its growth meant that the competition was no longer exclusively for patients. In 1960, the Stoke Mandeville Games were held in the city that was hosting the Olympic Games and were considered to be the first Paralympic Games in history, attended by 400 athletes from 23 countries. In 1964, in Tokyo, this sporting event became known as the Paralympic Games.
Women's participation in the Paralympics
In the first edition of the Paralympic Games, female participation was extremely limited. Women represented a small fraction of the athletes and took part in fewer disciplines than men. Over time, however, the Paralympic movement adopted a more inclusive stance, gradually promoting gender equality and encouraging the participation of female athletes with physical and sensory disabilities.
At the Toronto Games in 1976, competitions for women with visual impairments were introduced and in 1980, at the Arnhem Paralympics, it was the turn of athletes with intellectual disabilities to take part. These innovations were significant steps towards opening up new opportunities and increasing diversity, including women, in Paralympic sport.
Women's milestones at the Paralympic Games
Since the end of 1989, with the creation of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the Paralympic movement has gone from strength to strength, and women have begun to break historic records:
Trischa Zorn: American swimmer Trischa Zorn holds the record for the most medals won at the Paralympics, with an impressive 55 medals (41 gold) between 1980 and 2004.
Chantal Petitclerc: in swimming, Canadian Chantal Petitclerc was a great highlight, becoming one of the greatest athletes of all time, amassing 21 medals, 14 of them gold.
Béatrice Hess: the French swimmer is in 2nd place in the list of athletes who have won at least 10 gold medals in a sport, with a total of 25 (20 gold and 5 silver) between 1984-2004. Beatrice also broke nine world records at the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney, Australia.
Deepa Malik: the first Paralympic medalist in the history of her country, India, Deepa Malik won silver at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. She has won 47 gold, five silver and two bronze medals in national competitions, as well as 13 international medals.
These and other record-breakers have inspired a new generation of athletes, who continue to push the limits and redefine the standards of competition.
Brazilian women in the spotlight: meet the athletes who made history at the Paralympics
Brazil has an admirable track record in the Paralympics, especially among women. Since the 2000s, Brazilian athletes have excelled in the competition's disciplines.
Terezinha Guilhermina
One of the most notable names is Terezinha Guilhermina, a visually impaired sprinter who has become an icon of Brazilian Paralympic athletics. The athlete won six Paralympic medals during her career (three gold, one silver and two bronze), breaking records and becoming one of the best-known women in Brazilian Paralympic sport.
Susana Schnarndorf
Swimmer Susana Schnarndorf, who took part in the Rio 2016 Paralympics despite being diagnosed with a degenerative disease, is an inspiration to other athletes and the public for her strength and determination.
Josiane Lima
Josiane Lima is the first and only woman to win a medal at the Olympic and Paralympic Games. She began her rowing career in 2006, seeking to improve her quality of life after a serious motorcycle accident in which she almost had her leg amputated. In 2008, with rowing included in the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Josiane brought Brazil its first medal in this category.
Raissa Machado
At the last edition of the Games, in Paris 2024, Brazil continued to shine with athletes like Raissa Machado in the javelin throw. The athlete from Bahia is the current world record holder in the javelin throw in the F56 class (athletes who throw from chairs).
The performance of these and other Brazilian women in the Paralympics reinforces the country's potential and in the 2024 edition of the games has placed Brazil in a prominent position on the global Paralympic stage.
Paris 2024 Paralympic Games: Record number of female athletes
The trajectory of women in the Paralympics reflects the significant increase in gender equality and inclusion in sport. In 1960, women were a minority, with participation restricted to a few sports, but over the decades the number of female athletes and competitions has grown considerably. In London 2012, women already represented around 40% of athletes, a record at the time, and this participation will continue to grow until Paris 2024, with the inclusion of new disciplines and events.
The Paris Paralympics also consolidated equal prize money and visibility for women's competitions, with live broadcasts and a greater presence on social media, promoting an inspiring image of Paralympic athletes. This progress is the result of public policy initiatives, inclusion actions by the IPC and national committees, which have set targets to balance female and male participation.
