The 2024 Paralympics concludes Sunday, September 8th. After an exciting opening ceremony on August 28th, the 2024 Paralympic Games have now concluded, but with many exciting headlines, there’s lots to review about the 2024 game.
The USA was well represented in 2024 with 225 athletes competing, including 141 returning athletes, 100 of them previous medalists. The first events of the games were men and women’s para badminton, followed by para swimming and then para table tennis. Other para-sports that will be featured in Paris include goalball, para rowing, wheelchair fencing, and para track and field (also known as athletics), the games concluded with the men and women’s marathon, para powerlifting, and the gold medal match of men’s wheelchair basketball.
Among the numerous veteran paralympians is swimmer Jessica Long, the second most decorated Paralympian of all time. Born with fibular hemimelia, Long underwent many surgeries which eventually resulted in the amputation of her legs at 18 months old. Despite the challenge, Long has always loved swimming. She earned her first paralympic medal at age 12 in 2004, winning three gold medals in Athens. This Paralympics, Long has taken her medal count from 29 to 30 earning her fourth gold in the women’s 400 meter freestyle.
Additionally, Rebecca Hart will be competing in Para-Equestrian. Hart and her horse El Corona Texel were the first in the U.S. para-dressage team to medal at a world championship. Hart was born with a condition called hereditary spastic paraplegia, meaning that throughout her life her bones will begin to decay. Despite being wheelchair-bound, Hart won gold in the para-equestrian individual event grade III on Tuesday September 3rd.
If you’re looking for a trailblazing female success story, look no further than wheelchair rugby. Sarah Adam discovered wheelchair rugby when volunteering at occupational therapy school, and officially joined the sport in 2019. Adam is the first woman to compete on the U.S. wheelchair rugby team, as the sport is generally male dominated. Team U.S.A. won silver in a match against Japan that had viewers on the edge of their seats.
If you missed any of the paralympic games, Peacock offers replays of all the paralympic events. Para-athletes are often overlooked even at an international level, but they are proof that no matter your limitations, if you are dedicated enough you will see success.
