Rachels blog

       There are a few things that I think could be done to increase Paralympic media coverage and all other disabled sports combined. First, I think that for more media coverage to be made, there must be more investment into media that covers disabled sports. Not only this, but encouragement should also be made toward larger networks and platforms to stream the Paralympics or Paralympic advertising. Ads are also a great way to bring the Paralympic games to people's attention, although you must be aware how these commercials frame the athletes. While watching the Paralympic commercials for this week's material, I found that they all stood out to me as showcasing the importance of the ability and the humanness of the athletes rather than focusing on the disability of the athlete.       I find that this type of media coverage for disabled people could further serve to address the issues of how people with disabilities are often portrayed in lights t...

       When reading about the Olympic maxim, I found that I agreed with Dr. Guttman's sentiment that the Paralympic games are more “true” to Pierre de Coubertin's Olympic maxim stating that "the most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning, but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering, but fighting well". When the Olympic games inevitably roll around every four years, I have noticed that the general attitude towards the game is a competitive and high stakes one. I have found that we are much more focused on the end result: gold, silver, or bronze? Did the USA win? Any records we beat? Do we have more medals than China?       This attitude towards the Olympics in my opinion is quite the opposite of Coubertin’s maxim, which focuses more on the journey, perseverance, adaptability, and the indomitable human spirit. I feel that Guttman was correct in his opinion on the Paralympic games being more reflective of the maxim be...

I have never put much thought into the word “Paralympic” let alone focusing on the root word “para”. Whenever reading or hearing this word previously, with an assumed full understanding that these games are the Olympics for the disabled, I’d only ever think of an athlete with a prosthetic leg, sprinting down the track. I had never stopped to ask myself what this small part of the word meant, or how it carried meaning to the actual event itself, to me it was only ever just that, an event. When reading about the root word “para” meaning “next to”, I felt that the term wasn't exactly fair to the athletes who participate in the Paralympics. To be “next to” something, or always referred to as an extension of something else felt as if the Paralympics should be seen as a side event, or “less than”  in comparison to the Olympics. I share the same sentiment when comparing the words “Paralympian” and “Olympian”, in my mind, they both have won an olympic medal, and should be granted the same ...