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Bigger than ever Sydney Paralympic Games to boast record numbers
The Sydney Paralympic Games will be the largest ever held, with over 4,000 athletes from more than 125 countries. Atlanta hosted 113 delegates at the 1996 Paralympic Games, while 83 were represented in Barcelona in 1992. The Paralympic Torch Relay begins at Parliament House in Canberra on Oct. 4,when it will be lit by a local Aboriginal group. The torch will then travel to every Australian capital city before being used to light the Paralympic cauldron in Sydney on Oct. 18. A quick description of the 18 events in which athletes will compete at this year's Paralympic Games: Archery -- One of the original Paralympic sports, archery includes singles, doubles and team events. The sport was introduced in England in 1948 and became a Paralympic sport in 1960 in Rome. Both wheelchair and standing athletes compete, using identical scoring systems to the Olympic events. Ouk-Soo Lee of Korea and Paola Fantato of Italy are the favorites to win medals. Athletics -- The largest Paralympic sport in terms of the number of competitors and spectators, athletics became part of the Paralympic Games in 1960 and is open to all impairment classes. Events include track, throwing, jumping, pentathlon and marathon events. The United States' Brian Frasure and Australia's Louise Sauvage are the favorites heading into Sydney. Basketball -- The sport is divided into two disciplines: Intellectual Disability and Wheelchair. Wheelchair Basketball became a Paralympic sport in 1960 in Rome and uses a court size and basket height similar to traditional basketball's. Intellectual Disability Basketball will be a new discipline at Sydney 2000 and is played according to the rules of the International Basketball Federation. Boccia -- A traditional recreation that first appeared on the Paralympic program in 1984. Boccia is played by cerebral palsy athletes, competing individually or as a team indoors on a smooth, flat surface. Cycling -- The sport includes individual and team events consisting of track and road races. Originally, different disability groups practiced cycling at separate events, but at the 1992 Barcelona Paralympic Games, amputees, athletes with locomotor impairments and visually impaired athletes were brought together for the first time. The athletes use tandem bicycles, standard racing bikes, tricycles or specially constructed cycles. Equestrian -- This event was first included in the Paralympic program at the 1996 Atlanta Games. The sport is open to all disability groups, featuring routines with high levels of balance, rhythm, energy and precision. Fencing -- The sport was first introduced in 1953 in international games and included in the Paralympic Games in 1960. It comprises foil, épée and sabre events for amputees, cerebral palsy athletes and wheelchair athletes. Competitors sit in wheelchairs which are fixed to the ground, but allow freedom of body movement. Football -- Known as "soccer" in America, football became a Paralympic sport in 1984 and is played by cerebral palsy athletes. The Paralympic version has just seven players per team, and a smaller field and goal, with no offside rule. Goalball -- Goalball became a Paralympic sport at Seoul 1988 and is played by visually impaired athletes. Bells inside the ball guide the flow of play, so complete silence is required when the ball is in play. All players wear masks so that varying degrees of vision are made level. The game is played on an indoor court similar in size to a volleyball court. Judo -- This event is only open to visually impaired athletes and follows the rules of the International Judo Federation. It was first included in the Paralympic program at the Seoul Games in 1988. The main difference from other judo events is that the mats have varied textures to indicate competition zones to visually impaired athletes. Great Britain's Simon Jackson is the favorite to win gold. Powerlifting -- This competition focuses on the bench press and was first introduced at the Paralympic Games in 1964 for athletes with spinal cord injuries, and later extended to include all disability groups. Current Paralympic world records exceed able-bodied records by up to 12kg in four weight classes. Ahmed Mohamed Goumaa Ahmed of Egypt and Jianxin Bian of China are two of the thletes to watch in this event. Sailing -- Only a demonstration event at the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics, sailing will be a medal sport in Sydney. Open to all disability groups, it consists of sonar events for crews of three, and for single competitors. Crews compete in 23-foot keelboats while single competitors use 2.4-meter, single-handed keelboats. Shooting -- Wheelchair and standing athletes take part in the competitions, which are comprised of rifle, pistol, air and .22-caliber events. It became a Paralympic sport in 1980. Sweden's Jonas Jacobsson has been the world's best shooter. Swimming -- This sport has been on the Paralympic Games program since 1960 and is open to all disability groups. No prostheses or assistive devices may be worn during competition. France's Béatrice Hess is one of the favorites to win gold in Sydney Table Tennis -- Introduced at the first Paralympic Games in Rome, table tennis includes singles, team and open events, in which both wheelchair and standing athletes take part. All matches are best-of-three games, and each game is played to 21 points, identical to conventional table tennis. Tennis -- Paralympic tennis includes singles and doubles events. Wheelchair athletes and athletes with a mobility-related disability compete. The ball is allowed to bounce twice on each half of the court. Volleyball -- Volleyball, which became a Paralympic sport in 1976 in Toronto, includes two disciplines: standing and sitting. The sitting version is played on a smaller court with a lower net, making it a very fast-paced game. Wheelchair Rugby -- This event combines elements of basketball,
football and ice hockey. It was a demonstration event at the 1996 Atlanta
Paralympics and has since become a medal sport. It is played by quadriplegic
athletes on a basketball court.
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