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Revision as of 14:58, 14 March 2014

See also: 2014 Winter Olympics
Winter
Summer
Paralympic agitos
Part of a series on
2014 Winter Paralympics

The 2014 Winter Paralympics, the eleventh Paralympic Winter Games, and also more generally known as the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games, are a major international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), currently being held in Sochi, Russia from 7–16 March 2014. 45 National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) are expected to participate in the Games, which will mark the first time Russia has hosted the Paralympics. The Games will feature 72 medal events in five sports, and will see the debut of snowboarding at the Winter Paralympics.[1]

The lead-up to these games were met with concerns regarding Russia's recent military intervention in the nearby Crimean peninsula of Ukraine, which led to both the United Kingdom and United States choosing not to send governmental delegations to the Games, British government officials intending to publicly boycott the games, and all but one member of the Ukrainian Paralympic team symbolically protesting by refusing to attend the opening ceremony. While an IPC representative stated that it intends to monitor the situation throughout the Games, these concerns have not yet affected the participation of athletes from these three countries—although, the head of Ukraine's NPC has threatened to pull its athletes from the Games if the situation escalates.

Bidding process

Main article: Bids for the 2014 Winter Olympics

As part of a formal agreement between the International Paralympic Committee and the International Olympic Committee first established in 2001, the winner of the bid for the 2014 Winter Olympics would also host the 2014 Winter Paralympics.[2] Following the second and final round of voting at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City, Guatemala on July 4, 2007, the city of Sochi, Russia was awarded the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics.[3]

2014 Host City Election — ballot results
City Country (NOC) Round 1 Round 2
Sochi  Russia 34 51
Pyeongchang  South Korea 36 47
Salzburg  Austria 25 —

Organization

Venues

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Main article: Venues of the 2014 Winter Olympics
Main article: Venues of the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics
Panoramic view of the Sochi Olympic Park

As with previous Paralympics, the 2014 Winter Paralympics will use most of the same venues that were used by the Olympics, situated within the Sochi Olympic Park and the resort of Krasnaya Polyana.[1] Despite the IPC believing that Russia had "zero track record in terms of accessibility" (given the Soviet Union passed on hosting the 1980 Summer Paralympics after claiming no disabled athletes lived in Russia), the venues were built to the IPC's standards, organizers were quick to fix some of the issues pointed out by officials during an audit of the venues in January 2014, and an IPC spokesperson stated that they were "confident and expect everything to be ready for Games time." Organizers and the IPC hoped that the Paralympics' legacy would make Sochi a role model for inclusive design throughout the country, and IPC president Philip Craven went as far as dubbing Sochi the first accessible city in Russia, commending the country's changed stance on disability since 1980.[4][5]

Sochi Olympic Park (Coastal Cluster)

The Sochi Olympic Park was built by the Black Sea coast in the Imeretin Valley, about 4 km (2.5 miles) from Russia's border with Abkhazia.[6][7] The venues are clustered around a central water basin with a synchronized fountain, allowing all indoor venues to be within walking distance.[8][9] The venues which will be used during the Paralympics will include:

A sketch of the layout of Sochi Olympic Park.

Krasnaya Polyana (Mountain Cluster)

Main article: Krasnaya Polyana, Sochi, Krasnodar Krai
2014 Winter Paralympics Mountain Cluster Venues (interactive map)

Mascot

Main article: 2014 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games mascots
File:Paralympics 2014 stamp 30 RUB.jpg
Snowflake and Ray of Light ("Snezhinka" and "Luchik")

A shortlist of 10 Olympic and 3 Paralympic designs were shown to the public on February 7, 2011, while the winners were revealed on February 26, 2011.[10] This marks the third time (after Vancouver) that both Olympic and Paralympic mascots were unveiled at the same time. Ray of Light and Snowflake are the two mascots that were chosen for the 2014 Paralympic Games.[11] Ray of Light and Snowflake come from different planets. Ray of Light comes from a planet where it's always hot, while Snowflake came to earth on an icy comet. She looks like a snowflake, while he has hair that looks like fire.[12]

The Games

Opening ceremony

Main articles: 2014 Winter Paralympics opening ceremony and 2014 Winter Paralympics Parade of Nations

The opening ceremony of the Games were held at Fisht Olympic Stadium on 7 March 2014. Entitled "Breaking the Ice", the ceremony was themed around equality and "breaking" barriers, featuring ballet sequences set to music by notable Russian composers, and animated segments by Aleksandr Petrov based on the story of the firebird. During the parade of nations, Ukraine chose to represent itself solely with a flagbearer in protest of the Crimean crisis. In his opening speech, IPC president Philip Craven praised Russia for finally fulfilling its "dream" of hosting the Paralympics after previously passing on the opportunity in 1980. He called upon spectators to have a "barrier-free mind", stating that "the sport you witness here will change you. Not just for now, but forever." The Paralympic cauldron was jointly lit by Russian Paralympians Olesya Vladykina and Sergey Shilov.[13][14]

Participating National Paralympic Committees

Forty-five National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) have athletes competing at the 2014 Winter Paralympics.[15] This is one more that were represented at the 2010 Winter Paralympics.

Brazil, Turkey and Uzbekistan will be taking part in the Winter Paralympic Games for the first time.

Hungary and South Africa, who participated in Vancouver, are not participating in Sochi.

Sports

The sports scheduled to be competed in Sochi include:

Calendar

See also: Chronological summary of the 2014 Winter Paralympics
OC Opening ceremony ● Event competitions # Event finals CC Closing ceremony
March 7th
Fri 		8th
Sat 		9th
Sun 		10th
Mon 		11th
Tue 		12th
Wed 		13th
Thu 		14th
Fri 		15th
Sat 		16th
Sun 		Events
Ceremonies OC CC
Alpine skiing 6 3 3 ● 3 3 8 3 3 32
Biathlon 6 6 6 18
Cross-country skiing 2 4 6 2 6 20
Ice sledge hockey ● ● ● ● ● ● 1 1
Wheelchair curling ● ● ● ● ● ● ● 1 1
Total events 12 5 7 6 9 3 14 7 9 72
Cumulative total 12 17 24 30 39 42 56 63 72
March 7th
Fri 		8th
Sat 		9th
Sun 		10th
Mon 		11th
Tue 		12th
Wed 		13th
Thu 		14th
Fri 		15th
Sat 		16th
Sun 		Events

Medals

Main article: List of 2014 Winter Paralympics medal winners

Sochi's Paralympic medal design was unveiled in May 2013 alongside its Olympic equivalent. The design incorporates a "patchwork quilt" of diamonds, some of which are translucent, containing designs that reflect Russia's regions, and also contain inscriptions in braille.[16][17]

Medal table

Main article: 2014 Winter Paralympics medal table

  *   Host nation (Russia)

RankNPCGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1 Russia (RUS)*30282280
2 Germany (GER)95115
3 Canada (CAN)72716
4 Ukraine (UKR)591125
5 France (FRA)53412
6 Slovakia (SVK)3227
7 Japan (JPN)3126
8 United States (USA)27918
9 Austria (AUT)25411
10 Great Britain (GBR)1326
11–19Remaining NPCs57820
Totals (19 entries)727272216

Broadcasting

In February 2013, following its successful broadcast of the 2012 Summer Paralympics, British broadcaster Channel 4 announced on February 2014 that it had obtained the broadcast rights to further Games, including the 2014 Winter Paralympics, and 2016 Summer Paralympics. Channel 4 plans to broadcast more than 45 hours of coverage from Sochi.[18][19] Australian coverage will be provided by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, including live online streaming. However, aside from the opening ceremony (which was broadcast live), television coverage was limited to a daily half-hour highlights show.[20]

In the United States, NBC Sports acquired the rights to the 2014 and 2016 Paralympics in September 2013. Following criticism of its minimal coverage of past Paralympics (such as at the 2012 Summer Paralympics, where in contrast to its extensive Olympics coverage, it broadcast only five-and-a-half hours of highlights), NBC announced plans for a total of 52 hours of coverage during the Games, with at least 27 hours of coverage (including the ceremonies) broadcast live. The majority of its coverage will be relegated to NBC Sports Network, but NBC aired highlights of the opening ceremony the following afternoon, and live coverage of the sledge hockey finals.[21][22] In Canada, the CBC will, in conunction with the Canadian Paralympic Committee, produce and syndicate television and digital coverage of the Games, which will be broadcast by CBC Television (30 hours), Ici Radio-Canada Télé (French, 7 hours), and Sportsnet. AMI-tv will provide coverage with described video, and Yahoo! Sports Canada will also syndicate digital content.[23]

Concerns and controversies

See also: Concerns and controversies at the 2014 Winter Olympics

Many of the concerns and controversies around the 2014 Winter Paralympics are shared with the previous Winter Olympics. Amongst these were gay rights, terrorism concerns, the Circassian history of the area and so on. However, the 2014 Crimean crisis which began in the Olympic period became more severe during the Paralympics, raising fears of a possible war involving south west Russia.

Gay rights

See also: LGBT rights in Russia

Channel 4 (which serves as the official British broadcaster of the 2014 Winter Paralympics) adopted a rainbow-coloured logo and broadcast a "celebratory", pro-LGBT advert entitled "Gay Mountain" on 7 February 2014, alongside an interview with former rugby union player and anti-homophobia activist Ben Cohen.[24][25]

On 4 February 2014, Norway's openly gay health minister Bent Høie announced he would attend the Sochi Paralympics with his husband.[26] It is common for cabinet officials to travel with their spouses.[26]

Anatoly Pakhomov, mayor of Sochi, explained to reporters prior to the Games that homosexuality "was not the custom in the Caucasus", and claimed that no gays lived in Sochi at all (despite the presence of two gay clubs and evidence of a LGBT community in Sochi on a Russian social network). He went on to say that everyone, including gays, were welcome in Sochi, "as long as they do not impose their habits on others."[27]

Crimean crisis

Main article: 2014 Crimean crisis

On 27–28 February 2014 in the aftermath of the Ukrainian revolution, Russian troops seized control of most of the Crimean peninsula of Ukraine located on the northern coast of the Black Sea (roughly 480 kilometres (300 mi) from Sochi),[28] including civil buildings, airports, and military bases.[29] On 1 March 2014, the Russian legislature approved the use of the Russian military in Ukraine, and Russian officials stated that their military forces in Crimea were not a breach of existing agreements between Russia and Ukraine.[30] The Ukrainian response has been muted trying to find a diplomatic solution, with no military action on the part of Ukraine's government, which was formed in Kiev less than a week before the intervention. Russia vowed troops would stay until the political situation has been "normalised".[31] A referendum on whether Crimea will separate from Ukraine will be held on 16 March 2014—the same day as the closing ceremony of these Games.[32]

The effects of these developments on the Paralympics have led to several notable political actions. On 2 March 2014, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced that British government officials were planning to boycott the 2014 Winter Paralympics in response to the situation in Crimea, while Prince Edward cancelled plans to travel to Sochi for the Games "on the advice of government."[33][34] On 3 March 2014, United States National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden announced that the United States would not send a presidential delegation to Sochi (which was to be led by Tammy Duckworth) at all, "in addition to other measures we are taking in response to the situation in Ukraine." Neither of the boycotts will affect the participation of the UK and US in the Games; in particular, Hayden went on to say that "President Obama continues to strongly support all of the U.S. athletes who will participate in the Paralympics and wishes them great success".[33][35]

IPC communications head Craig Spence reported that there have not been any boycott efforts among athletes, and stated that although the organization will keep an eye on the situation in the Crimea, "we've obviously expressed our disappointment with what's going on in the political situation, but at the end of the day, we're not here to do politics. We're here to organize a sporting event." He went on to emphasize that the same level of security measures in place during the Olympics would be in place during the Paralympics, ensuring that Sochi would be the "safest place" in the country during the Games.[28][36]

The Ukraine team will still participate in the Games, but Valeriy Sushkevich, head of the country's National Paralympic Committee, warned that they would boycott the Games and withdraw all of their athletes if the situation escalates into an invasion of eastern Ukraine. As a symbolic protest, all but one of the country's 31 athletes declined to attend the opening ceremony. Nordic skier and flagbearer Mykailo Tkachenko was the sole representative of Ukraine in the parade of nations; his entrance was met with a roar of applause from the crowd in attendance.[5]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Para-Snowboard secures Paralympic Games inclusion". BBC Sport. 2 May 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  2. ^ "Paralympics 2012: London to host 'first truly global Games'". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  3. ^ "Sochi Elected as Host City of XXII Olympic Winter Games". Olympic.org. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  4. ^ "Sochi 2014 Paralympics: IPC confident on venue accessibility". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  5. ^ a b "Ukrainians stage symbolic protest at opening of Sochi Winter Paralympics". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  6. ^ "Sochi's mixed feelings over Olympics". BBC News. 26 November 2008. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
  7. ^ Russian Deputy PM leads Sochi delegation to inspect Munich Olympic Park Inside the Games, 22 May 2010
  8. ^ Madler, Mark (24 February 2014). "WET Design Runs Rings Around Rivals". San Fernando Business Journal. Los Angles, California: California Business Journals. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  9. ^ "California-based WET makes the waters dance at Sochi". Gizmag. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
  10. ^ "Russia unveils candidates for Sochi mascot". Sports.espn.go.com. 7 February 2011. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  11. ^ After favourite disqualified, 3 mascots chosen for Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, Winnipeg Free Press, February 26, 2011
  12. ^ "Official mascot site of Sochi 2014". Talisman.sochi2014.com. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  13. ^ Brandon Hicks (7 March 2014). "2014 Paralympics open in Sochi". CBC. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  14. ^ "#Neverstop: 2014 Paralympic Games kick off in Sochi (PHOTOS)". Russia Today. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  15. ^ "Countries". Sochi2014.com. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  16. ^ "The Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee unveils Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games medals". Sochi 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  17. ^ "Sochi 2014 unveils Paralympic Winter Games medals". Paralympic.org. Retrieved 9 Mach 2014. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  18. ^ "Channel 4 pays £7m to screen 2014 and 2016 Paralympic Games". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  19. ^ "Channel 4 secures 2014 and 2016 Paralympic Games rights". International Paralympic Committee. 8 February 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
  20. ^ "Sochi 2014 Winter Paralympic Games". TV Tonight. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  21. ^ "Television Schedule Set For Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games". USOC. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  22. ^ "Paralympic Movement given huge boost as American channels NBC and NBCSN will cover next two Games". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  23. ^ "CBC Unveils Multiplatform Coverage of Sochi 2014 Paralympic Games". Broadcaster Magazine. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  24. ^ Claire, Hodgson (6 February 2014). "Sochi 2014: Channel 4 logo goes rainbow to show support for gay community ahead of Winter Olympics". The Mirror. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  25. ^ "C4 goes rainbow to wish "good luck to those out in Sochi"". Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  26. ^ a b "Gay Norwegian minister to take husband to Sochi Paralympics". Ca.reuters.com. 4 February 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  27. ^ "Sochi mayor says there are 'no gay people' living in the city". RT. 27 January 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  28. ^ a b "Sochi Paralympics 2014: No plans for boycott - IPC". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  29. ^ "Russian troops seize Crimea". POLITICO. 1 March 2014. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  30. ^ "Russian Parliament approves use of army in Ukraine". The Hindu. 1 March 2014. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  31. ^ "Ukraine crisis: Russia vows troops will stay". BBC. 3 March 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  32. ^ "Crimea's referendum to leave Ukraine: how did we get here?". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  33. ^ a b "British Officials to Boycott Sochi Paralympics". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  34. ^ "Ukraine crisis: David Cameron says ministers will boycott Sochi 2014 Paralympics in response to Russia's declaration of war". The Independent. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  35. ^ "USA won't send presidential delegation to Sochi Paralympics". USA Today. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  36. ^ "Paralympics organizers fear Crimea unrest will overshadow Games". CBC News. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
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XI Paralympic Winter Games (2014) 		Succeeded by

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