Why the Olympics and Paralympics can’t be combined into one Games

As the lights went out on an outstanding Olympic Games in Paris, with record-breaking media attention and excellent medal results for Team Canada, it’s important to remember the Games aren’t over – it’s just the halfway mark.

Although the closing ceremony on 11 August seemed like the end of the event with the official handover to Los Angeles for the 2028 Summer Games, the 2024 Games are really just on pause.

This two-week break be­­tween the Olympic and Paralympic Games isn’t a respite at all. Paris is now getting ready to host the Paralympic Games, which will begin on 28 August with the opening ceremony. In a few days, a whole new set of elite international athletes will descend on Paris for the third-largest sporting event in the world.

Staff have been working hard to set up venues for the Paralympic sports. This means tearing down some temporary venues and putting up others that facilitate accessibility for Paralympic sports, athletes and their entourage.

Transforming the village, which housed just more than 14,000 athletes and team personnel for the Olympics, to get it ready for the 8,000 para athletes and staff for the Paralympic Games is no simple feat.

A logistical nightmare

At this juncture, the question often arises as to why the Olympics and Paralympics aren’t combined together into one Games. The reasoning behind the decision is more complicated than it might appear.

In 2001, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) signed the One Bid, One City agreement to protect the interests of the Paralympic Games.

The agreement requires host cities to stage both the Olympic and Paralympic Games using the same venues, facilities and infrastructure. This also unites the two sporting movements.

The sheer size of such an event would make it impossible for almost any city to host a single combined Olympic and Paralympic Games. Consider the logistics of an event that would include about 15,000 athletes over 50 sporting disciplines.

In the current iteration, there are already 15 cities outside Paris playing host to events. For instance, sailing was held in Marseille, shooting was held in Châteauroux and the rowing and canoe-kayak events were held in Vaires-sur-Marne.

Even a city with the resources and infrastructure of Paris could not, and would not, host an event of that size.

Combining the two Games would necessitate a change in structure, and inevitably sports – likely Paralympic sports – would be dropped. Hence the two-week break between Games.

Paralympics deserves the spotlight

The discussion about the separation of the two events goes much deeper than logistical concerns. Some supporters of the Paralympic Games see the need and value for a separate event that showcases and highlights elite athletes with disabilities.

IPC president Andrew Parsons, for example, argues that hosting the Paralympic Games separately focuses on their broader mission of drawing attention to “issues of disability rights, accessibility and broader areas of inclusion for the legacy of the event”.

The distinct Paralympic event showcases the elite performances of para athletes, giving them the attention and celebration deserved. All too often, para athletes’ successes are overshadowed by the tendency of media to prioritise able-bodied athletes, often marginalising or overlooking the achievements of athletes with disabilities.

The challenge, then, is for the host city to maintain the momentum from the Olympics and ensure Paralympic athletes receive the recognition they deserve for their sporting successes. The Canadian Paralympic Committee launched its Greatness Moves Us campaign recently to highlight the stories of excellence of Paralympic athletes and galvanise support and viewership.

A lasting legacy

Ultimately, the Paralympic Games showcase elite sporting excellence in a way that no other event does. But they are about so much more – championing inclusion, disability rights and a lasting legacy of social change.

Paris is an example of a city that has stepped up to the challenge. It put accessibility at the centre of its bid, knowing full well the challenge ahead of athletes with disabilities in the historic city.

Leading into the Games, the city has made good on many promises about accessibility and increasing opportunities for people with disabilities. The city upgraded the overground transportation network by adding fully accessible bus and tram lines, and introduced 1,000 accessible taxis.

It also tackled some challenging tasks, such as upgrading historic venues into accessible sporting spaces. More than €10-million was allocated to improve the accessibility of six major sports facilities, including the Georges Vallerey swimming pool and the Pierre de Coubertin Stadium.

The aim is to sustain the momentum, not only between the Olympic and Para­lympic Games, but long after they conclude, with the goal of creating a more inclusive society in France.

Leading up to the start of the Paralympics, there is some concern about whether the momentum will be there from a viewership perspective and spectators in the stands. The Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games set records for viewership in a Games that was largely devoid of spectators in the stands because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

American television network NBC reported 15.5 million viewers per night for the 2020 Olympic Games, in contrast to the 14 million viewers in total for the 2020 Paralympic Games.

But many of us will be looking more at the momentum of the event to be a catalyst for inclusion, access and opportunity beyond the events. Once all the lights go out on the Games, it is the lasting legacy of social change that will be the ultimate judge of the success of both the Olympic and Paralympic Games. DM

First published by The Conversation.

Laura Misener is a professor and director at the School of Kinesiology at Western University in Ontario, Canada.

This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.