Participating in an Olympic event for the majority of athletes requires a great deal of determination and perseverance in order to make it to the Olympics.  The Olympics is a culmination of a lifetime of hard work striving to be the World’s best.  This year’s Olympic Summer Games in London will be no different in that every competitor will have overcome the odds to end up on an international stage, but for some those obstacles are more readily apparent.

The London 2012 Paralympic Games will be the biggest Paralympics yet, with 20 sports involving participants from 163 competing nations. The UK is considered to be the birthplace of the Paralympic Games and has a strong history in Paralympic sport. In 1948, Dr. Ludwig Guttmann organised a wheelchair archery competition at Stoke Mandeville hospital for World War II soldiers with spinal cord injuries. Four years later, competitors from the Netherlands joined and the International Paralympic Movement was born. In preparing for the 2012 Paralympics, London has been praised for venue readiness and accessibility.

Paralympic sport venues will be spread across London in many different locations, including the Olympic Stadium and the ExCel Center, as well as the impressive Aquatics Centre and The Royal Artillery Barracks.

The London Games will be broadcast in Europe, with UK’s Channel 4 planning to broadcast over 150 hours of television coverage. Live web streaming and social media will play a big part in broadcasting news and updates for the Games.

The video was produced by the Canadian Paralympic Committee.

Information courtesy of www.paralympic.ca/london2012