Added: 11/21/2005 |
Paralympic tennis history is a history of strong and courageous people.In 1888, the first sports club in Germany, Berlin to be precise, was created for the hearing impaired. Because of damage to the support impellent device, high powered sports became available to invalids only after the Second World War.
In 1944, at the Center of Rehabilitation of patients with trauma to the backbone, the special rehabilitation sports program, as an obligatory part of the complex treatment was developed. In 1948, when the Olympic Games were held in Great Britain, under the direction of Doctor Ludwig Guttmann, sports meets for invalids in archery were created. In the next few years, the quantity of participants increased, from 16 to several hundreds, and the quantity and kinds of sports have greatly increased.
Paralympics tennis history began in Rome, Italy in 1960. The opening ceremonies of the first Paralympics Games took place in September in the stadium called "Aquaacetos" with five thousand spectators and fans. Participation in competitions was accepted by sportsmen from 23 countries. For the participation in the first Olympic Games for invalids, almost 400 sportsmen gathered. The biggest delegation of athletes came from Italy.
Eight kinds of sports have been included in the program for the Paralympic Games for invalids. The sports included are: Swimming, fencing, track and field, basketball, archery, and table tennis. Paralympic tennis history has shown these new games of flight that are set for invalids, the new purpose in their lives, but it has also let them realize that despite their serious problems with health they could still have a very active life. In the first Paralympic Games, the first place of command offset was won by Italy.
One of the brightest moments in paralympic tennis history was at the 8th Paralympic Games. The competition was is South Korea. The Paralympic Games in Korea Seoul 1988 gave many sportsmen invalids a chance to realize their potential. A record number of people participated in those games. There were more than 3000 participants from 61 countries. The program of the 8th Paralympic Games contained 16 sports. As a demonstration, table tennis in wheelchairs as a sport was submitted. Tennis players became a sensation of the games in 1988, and in addition, table tennis in wheelchairs has become a strong part of paralympic tennis history. The team with the biggest medal count was the United States with 268 medals. Germany had 189 medals and Great Britain had 179 medals.
In the 11th Para Olympic Games in Australian Sydney 2000, was played by many of the participants and in the opinion of the majority of experts, the professional level of the competition was very high. In addition, the 11th Paralympic Games was considered to be one of the most colorful and entertaining sporting events of 2000 besides the Olympic Games.
Considering that paralympic tennis history was a history of a different type of sports, one may admit with confidence that with tennis in wheelchairs, people who are not afraid of their weakness and can play very hard with a strong spirit, can try to win there and become a champion.
Article comments:
No comments for this article yet. Post your comment now!
