Homepage of the Austrian Paralympic Committee

Austrian athletes have successfully competed from 1960 and witnessed the outstanding development of Paralympic Sport all over the world.

In 1960 the Austrian Team won 30 medals, 11 Gold, 8 Silver and 11 Bronze. 23 athletes competed in Archery, Athletics, Indian Club Throwing, Swimming, Table Tennis and Wheelchair Basketball.
In the early days of development only athletes using a wheelchair were allowed to compete due to inadequate venue/village accessibility. However they have been unique and unforgettable for all 400 competitors from 23 countries. Austrian Team members remember the Games as a huge, exciting sports event, because only a few days earlier, the Olympic athletes were there, celebrating the 1960 Olympic Summer Games.
Apart from the Opening Ceremony, where the Paralympic athletes were watched by almost 5.000 spectators, they were almost unrecognized by spectators and the media.

40 years later many things changed and the Sydney 2000 Games marked another huge step towards equal treatment in Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The Austrian Team (49 athletes) was overwhelmed by 100.000 spectators during the Opening Ceremony and the huge amount of spectators at each competition venue.  Not every competition took place at the same venue as during the Olympics, but the overall Games Operations such as logistics, accessibility, etc. were outstanding and exemplary.
Perfect organisation, dedicated volunteers, and the wonderful Australian ‘way of life’ made the 2000 Sydney Games so successful and unique.
Besides huge media coverage in Australia, even the Austrian media (print & TV) covered the Games in more detail than ever before. The Paralympic Games were finally recognized as a high performance sport event and no longer compared to the Special Olympics. Of course the achievements of the Austrian athletes - they won 15 medals (2 Gold, 7 Silver and 6 Bronze) – helped to increase attention and interest.

The Paralympic Movement has developed even further during the past ten years - with “2008 Beijing” and “2010 Vancouver” as the highlights - Games Organising Committees and National Paralympic Committees have used the Sydney experience to enter a new level of professional Games Management in preparing the Games.

Paralympic issues, requirements and ideas are being treated more seriously and equally.
With every little step, the Games are developing into one event – ‘the Olympic and Paralympic Games’ and this leads to better opportunities to promote the Games nationally (inside Austria) as well. Daily TV coverage during the 2010 Vancouver  Games is one important piece of the overall development in Austria. From Olympic to Paralympic Games NPCs witnessed a smooth transition, with most venues used for the Paralympic Games, so no deconstruction took place before the end of the Paralympic Games.

The 2012 London Games are expected to be the next milestone with approx. 4.000 athletes from 150 countries, competing in 20 sports.
LOCOG has to deliver a Paralympic Games exceeding the Beijing & Vancouver Games, NPCs have to adapt their national work to today’s standards and expectations, and – of course – the athletes have reach their high performance goals.

The Austrian Paralympic Committee was founded in 1998 with the objective of enabling qualified athletes to compete in the Paralympics. The main task is to create the financial basis for participation and to offer the best possible conditions for the athletes.

Widespread public interest in and admiration of the regularly outstanding performances of top athletes, the financial support of the sponsors and the substantial engagement of all persons involved in the organisation make it possible for top athletes with disabilities to continue taking up the challenges of Paralympic Games.

To date, the Austrian Paralympic athletes have won a total of 208 Gold, 225 Silver and 223 Bronze medals!