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An overview of the Paralympics What exactly are the Paralympics? The Paralympics is a huge international sporting event for sports people with disabilities that takes place just after the Olympic Games in the same host city. Competitors come from all over the world and have a wide range of different disabilities from cerebral palsy to blindness. The Paralympic Games themselves are one of the biggest sporting events in the world and Paralympic athletes are serious, professional athletes who have trained hard for many years and come to The Games to win. Classifications To make lots of the sports fair, Paralympic athletes are put into six main categories depending on their disability. This means that Paralympians with the same or similar disabilities get to compete against each other. It wouldn' t be fair, for example, if a blind runner had to compete against an athlete in a wheelchair in the 1500m. What sports do they play? There are 20 sports played at the Paralympics and these break down into lots of different events. Some are the same as the Olympics like cycling and swimming but others are completely different and need different skills and talents. Different sports "Goalball" is a ball game played by blind athletes. The ball that is used has a bell inside so that players know where it is. Another game is "Boccia" pronounced "Bocha" which is a game for wheelchair users with cerebral palsy or similar conditions. It's a bit like bowls and players have to throw balls nearest to a white ball or "jack". | 
