They were supposed to be a celebration and recognition of the most noble of human accomplishments, an acknowledgment of those special athletes with disabilities who manage to overcome their handicaps and prove to the world that true Olympic spirit and extraordinary sportsmanship are not limited to the able-bodied.
Instead, they have become the disparaged stepsister of the summer Olympic Games — undervalued, under-appreciated and, now, it seems, underfunded.
The 2016 Summer Paralympics, due to begin in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, Sept. 7, have been the victim of financial cutbacks, as well as geopolitical Cold War power struggles (with the unprecedented exclusion of all Russian contestants, regardless of whether or not they had been found to be involved in doping … but then, that’s another column).
Having pulled out all the plugs to make an impressive showcase of Brazil as both a premier tourist destination and regional economic power, the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee now finds itself seriously short of cash.
Consequently, it has postponed paying travel grants to participating teams and is also considering cutting back on various services during the event in order to break even financially.
The Paralympics had already felt the squeeze when some of its funding was diverted to pay for renovations to Rio’s Olympic village.
In other words, the Paralympians are paying the price for the extravagant show presented during the Olympics.
This is a blatant exhibit of prejudice and discrimination, which goes against the very mandate of the Paralympics, which were first established in 1948 as a platform for promoting equal treatment and rights for disabled athletes as compared to their non-disabled counterparts.
The Rio Organizing Committee bears the brunt of the blame for this disgraceful marginalization of the Paralympians, but sponsors, the media and the public are also responsible for the inherent partiality against the neglected games.
At last report, only about 12 percent of the tickets for this summer’s Paralympics had been sold.
And while Nike and Speedo may be rushing to sign multimillion-dollar contracts with the likes of Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps, most Paralympians have to struggle to get even modest sponsors.
Some 4,000 disabled athletes from 176 countries are expected to compete in 23 different sports in Rio, and the Brazilian Organizing Committee had an initial budget of about $2.3 billion to pay for venues, accommodations and competitions.
The current budget is considerably less.
The Paralympic athletes and their families have already begun to trickle into Brazil.
Unless the Rio Organizing Committee can come up with the money to host them with the same generosity and grace that they did the Olympians, what awaits these exceptional athletes is the stark reality that — political correction aside — they are still considered second-best in the international arena of sports.
Thérèse Margolis can be reached at [email protected].
