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Let the Games begin again!
Global competitions in Paris resume this week with the start of the 2024 Paralympic Games. Thousands of elite athletes from around the world will compete for medals in 549 events over the course of 11 days.
Here’s a look at all of the sports that will be played.
Which sports are played at the Paralympics?
Events will be held across 22 sports in the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, including both individual and team sports.
Here’s a brief explanation of each sport, per Olympics.com:
Para Archery
Men and women with a physical disability can compete standing or in a wheelchair. Events begin with a ranking round where archers shoot 72 arrows over distances of 50m or 70m.
Para Athletics
Athletes can compete using a wheelchair (with three wheels), prostheses or a throwing seat in track events, jumping events and the marathon.
Para Badminton
Players compete in singles and pairs and are divided into six classes – four standing and two wheelchair – depending on the degree of impairment.
Blind Football
An adaptation of football for athletes with vision impairment played with an audible ball.
Three-time Paralympic medalist Trevon Jenifer previews the wheelchair basketball competition at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Off the court, Jenifer is the face of Citi’s “What happened” advertising campaign.
Boccia
Played by athletes in wheelchairs who have any kind of severe impairment that affects motor function, the goal of the sport is to throw or roll balls as close as possible to a small white ball called the “jack.”
Para Canoe
Para athletes compete over 200m directly in single-seater boats with a wider bottom for greater stability.
Para Cycling
Athletes use different bicycles according to their impairment classification, standard bicycles, handcycles, tricycles and tandems.
Para Equestrian
The para dressage competition, which includes the individual championship test, the team test where riders perform a set routine to music, and the individual freestyle test where each rider chooses their own routine and music.
Goalball
Goalball is a team sport designed for the visually impaired and blind. The attacking team tries to score by rolling a ball containing internal bells at speed along the floor towards the opposite goal defended by their opponents.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Paralympic sport of goalball.
Para Judo
Judokas with vision impairment must hold on to their opponent’s judogi during the entire bout as they attempt to throw their opponent to the ground, immobilize them with a pinning hold or force them into submission with a joint lock or choke.
Para Powerlifting
A bench press competition with 10 weight categories for both men and women.
Para Rowing
Rowers compete in four 2,000m events based on their sex and impairment category, with boats equipped with fixed seats for rowers without leg function.
Shooting Para Sport
Shooters compete in rifle and pistol events from distances of 10m, 25m and 50m while kneeling, standing, in a wheelchair or shooting seat, or using an elbow support table.
Sitting Volleyball
Played on a smaller volleyball court and with a lower net, two teams of six players slide around the court using the power of their arms to remain in the sitting position.
Para Swimming
Athletes compete in breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly, freestyle and the medley across various distances.
Para Table Tennis
Originally open only to athletes in wheelchairs, the sport is now played by athletes with a wide range of impairments. The match is determined over the best of five sets in singles and doubles.
Para Taekwondo
Athletes with impairments in either one or both upper limbs compete in a one round contest, in which they are awarded points by hitting their opponent’s torso.
Para Triathlon
Athletes swim 750m, cycle 20km and run 5km. Athletes in the seated class use a handcycle and are assisted by a handler in the event’s transition areas. Vision impaired athletes are accompanied by a guide and use a tandem on the bike.
Wheelchair Basketball
Played on the same sized court and hoop as Olympic basketball, athletes must either pass or bounce the ball after every two pushes of the wheels on their chairs to avoid being penalized for travelling.
Wheelchair Fencing
Athletes compete in foil, épée and sabre with their wheelchair in a special frame fastened to the floor so they are always close to their opponent.
Wheelchair Rugby
A mixed-team sport played by male and female athletes with some degree of paralysis in all four limbs. Played in specially designed manual wheelchairs, the objective of the highly-physical sport known as “Murderball” is to carry the ball over the opponent’s try line.
Sarah Adam, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, is attempting to become the first woman to ever represent Team USA at a Paralympics in wheelchair rugby, a sport so violent it is nicknamed “murderball.”
Wheelchair Tennis
Athletes with lower limb impairments, as well as athletes with both upper and lower limb impairments, compete in singles and doubles with the only rule change being that the ball can bounce twice before it must be returned.
Which sports are played in the Winter Paralympics?
Winter sports at the Paralympics include Para alpine skiing, Para nordic skiing, Para sled hockey, Para snowboard and Wheelchair curling.
When do the Paralympics start?
The Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics is Wednesday, Aug. 28, with competition getting underway officially Thursday, Aug. 29.
How to watch the 2024 Paralympics
Stream all the 2024 Paralympics action from Paris live on Peacock.
When three-time Paralympic medalist Trevon Jenifer is not representing the U.S. in wheelchair basketball, he is protecting his country as member of the Secret Service.
