Do the Paralympics give a true representation of disabled people?

[mids2019]

I am watching the Paralympics in the Commonwealth Games and I am struck by the resilience, tenacity and strength of character of the para athletes. They truly are positive role models.

However is there danger of the Paralympics giving a false impression to the able bodied public that disability is 'not that bad' as superficially it looks like disabled people can train to become athletes and be fêted on the world stage?

Disability in this country can be categorised by minimal state benefit, poor state support and real chance of poverty . Of course you have the ongoing stigma of disabilities in general within society.

The Paralympians I have seen interviewed are very eloquent but there seem to be few working class athletes. Are we hiding the fact that having a severe disability from a poor family with multiple social needs may be as grim experience and Paralympians as a group could aid in hi ighlighting this.

The paralympics show disabled people doing wonderful things. Not the pain they and other disabled people experience, often constant pain, they don't show people who are struggling with their disability, discrimination etc. Disabled people cannot be represented by elite sports people

They are as representative of disabled people as the Olympics are of everyone else.

The average person is not going to become an elite athlete and be feted on the world stage in the same way that the average disabled person is not going to either.

However for us all - able or not - having great role models is a wonderful thing. Having sport to enjoy watching is great. It encourages us all to think about getting involved in sport. It encourages young people to try out and take part in sport.

So disabled people should also have great role models too and we can all enjoy taking part in sport and watching sport no matter what.

I take both points above. I don't think Paralympians can necessarily show the vast difficulties disabled people face in life. There is an also an element of discrimination in that it is very difficult to be an elite athlete if you have a degenerative condition such as MS but possibly feasible to become a powerful wheelchair athlete as an amputee. Of course mental health issues such as ASD are not represented despite the mantra 'not all disabilities are visible'.

I agree about positive role models but should the Paralympian community be more ethnically and socially diverse?

I’m neither disabled nor a sport woman. But the answer to any sentence asking whether a few people represent the entirety of a category is ALWAYS “no”.

How can you get to adulthood and think any differently 🙄

@alphons
The question is should Paralympics be therefore more inclusive and representative?

Of course elite athletes aren't representative of a community as they need to be genetically predisposed to excellence in their event and have the dedication and resource to pursue their athletic goals

There is an argument Paralympics should be more representative as the whole point if the Paralympics is to make athletics more representative of society i.e. improve the visibility of disabled athletes

If we take this premise do we need to ensure that Paralympians come from range of social backgrounds with an increased range of disability?

Obviously they're not representative. Are they supposed to be?

the whole point if the Paralympics is to make athletics more representative of society

I don't that that's the point of para-sports at all How patronising.

I had no idea ASD and such conditions wasn't part of the Paralympics. Does anyone know why?

Para sport shouldn't be representative of disabled people as a whole the same way sports shouldn't be representative of able bodies people as a whole. I am able bodies but no one wants to watch me attempt the 100m sprint or any sport come to that. An elite female athlete and me are at two very different ends of the able bodies spectrum. Same way an elite wheelchair marathon athlete is at a very different end of the spectrum to my friend who is a wheelchair user but also likes to eat cake, watch films and generally chill.

As far as I'm aware Paralympics covers physical disabilities and someone with autism fall under Special Olympics (but I might be wrong).

I believe para sports is more for physical disabilities. There is the Special Olympics for people with learning disabilities but shockingly special Olympic athletes receive no funding.

No it's not representative in the slightest and I think it gives society the impression that other more disabled are not trying hard enough if they're not capable of this
Just my opinion as a woman with Cerebral Palsy who struggles to walk 20m

Because ASD and MH issues do not limit your physical ability. They might limit your ability to motivate yourself, but having ASD doesn't have any bearing on your ability to run fast or throw far etc etc.

@titchy

What is the point of the Paralympics?

I think it is showcase for disabled people to show their talents and as disabled people can not compete in a fiar fashion against abled bodied athletes it is only fair to have a separate competition?

In such away the Commonwealth games has an athlete profile more representative of society. I don't think that is necessarily patronising especially given the huge focus on diversity and inclusion made during these games I.e.making the games more representative.

I do know a couple of elite athletes who do have autism diagnoses and from an athletics perspective it's got a bit better over the last few years in terms of support. I know one of the athletes has just been selected to represent Team GB at the Euros in Munich this year.

Thats an interesting view point. Do you think able bodiesd people who aren't elite athlete level are just not trying hard enough?

This.
As long as we have got disabled people stuck on trains and planes and unable to go to the toilet in many public buildings, this is absolutely useless

The Para Olympics do not exist to give a true representation of disabled people.

They exist to give elite athletes who are disabled the opportunity to compete at an elite level.

Its a bit patronising to think of it in any other way tbh.

Disabled athletes are not representative of all ordinary Disabled people just as able bodied athletes are not representative of ordinary able bodied people.

I am a PA for a disabled woman and take her to her day centre which is for people with varying degrees of disability. IMO, the answer to your question would be a No.

I don't think Paralympians can necessarily show the vast difficulties disabled people face in life

But that's not their job. They are just there to be the best at their sport.

We don't expect able bodied athletes to show the vast difficulties that able bodied people have in life so why expect this of disabled athletes?

David Weir is proud of his working class family, and iirc grew up on a council estate. But as with all sports, its very expensive to become an elite athlete (and a racing chair or running leg isn't funded and is thousands - up to £20K+ for legs so a further barrier), so there is an element of selection of those whose parents have the time and money to take them to train.
There are plenty of athletes with degenerative conditions, and categories for them - Kadeena Cox for instance has MS and boccia has lots of players with muscular dystrophy.
As for ASD, there are categories for those with what is termed intellectual impairment (S14 in swimming for instance) where it impairs their ability to follow training instructions and make race decisions. As with all para sports, it is not enough to be diagnosed with something, you have to undergo multiple assessments to ascertain exactly how things affect you, and for instance it is not enough that you can't walk through pain you have to mechanically not be able to.

If we take this premise do we need to ensure that Paralympians come from range of social backgrounds with an increased range of disability? It's elite sport. When I think about the effort it takes to be a paralympian I'm just in awe. I would be banned if I posted my real thoughts about the OP

Why are you expecting para-sport to be held to a standard that society doesn't expect of able-bodied sport?
A GB Olympic Team is in no way representative of wider society (class, education, wealth, ethnicity...) - why should a GB Paralympic Team be any more expected to achieve this?

The Olympics and Paralympics showcase physical excellence in specific fields, they aren’t supposed to be ‘representative’. You talk about making them eg more ethnically diverse, but in practice how would you do that? Tell a white disabled fencer their place has been given to a less-white disabled fencer who wouldn’t otherwise qualify? Hardly in the spirit of the Olympics. You’re talking about positive discrimination and the Olympics are not about that. Wanna tell the black men in the 100m Olympics sprint that they ought to give up some of their places to slower white men so there’s more ethnic diversity in their event? Good luck with that.

Wanna help disabled people, focus on other things like the appalling way in which they’re regularly left stranded on planes and trains by staff mistakes.