The Paris Paralympics concluded today, September 8th, with Team Italy securing 6th place on the leaderboard with 71 medals, 2 more than in the previous edition.
In addition to the amazing results achieved by our athletes, what probably left the biggest mark was the humility and self-irony of the participants, who repeatedly lightened the mood regarding their conditions during interviews.
Records upon records: sports accessible to everyone
The Italian team participated with 141 athletes, marking a historic record in medals. The predictions were already very favorable, but the Italian selection exceeded expectations.
Below are the results obtained by the athletes:
- Swimming: 16 gold, 6 silver, and 15 bronze
- Track and Field: 4 gold, 3 silver, and 1 bronze
- Table Tennis: 2 gold
- Road Cycling: 1 gold, 2 silver, and 4 bronze
- Archery: 1 gold and 2 bronze
- Triathlon: 2 silver
- Wheelchair Fencing: 1 silver and 3 bronze
- Equestrian: 1 silver and 1 bronze
- Track Cycling: 1 bronze
- Powerlifting: 1 bronze
- Taekwondo: 1 bronze
- Archery: 1 bronze
Thus concludes a highly successful edition, giving great hope for the next edition in Los Angeles 2028. Beyond the golds, the prizes, and the individual records, the Italian athletes were also noted for their great sense of humor and self-irony.
The self-irony of Paralympic athletes we needed
Joking about the condition of those who are less fortunate is anything but gallant, yet it depends on the reason and the intent behind it. This is the message that 1999-born Rigivan Ganeshamoorthy wanted to convey, as he shared his story, overcoming his shyness after setting the world record in discus throw (27.06 m).
The young champion turned to sports after receiving his diagnosis in 2017, at the age of 18. He suffers from Guillain-Barré syndrome, an acute inflammatory polyneuropathy that confines him to a wheelchair due to muscle weakness and loss of distal sensation. Yet, Rigivan has always maintained a smile and often made jokes about his condition.
After the competition, he expressed his happiness about the event but joked, ironically, that there were perhaps too many disabled people. According to him, jokes and self-irony are wonderful; irony is important even when talking to someone with a disability. In fact, not joking about it is primitive behavior and an obsession of able-bodied people. This is Rigivan Ganeshamoorthy, a young man who has taught millions about life after making the best performance in Paralympic history.
Rigivan’s story might be the most striking and amusing, but it’s not the only one. Once again, sports have shown us how much we still have to learn about certain moral issues.
