[Dansk version]

Danish Paralympic logo - Sydney 2000

Paralympic Games - Sydney 2000
18.-29. October, Sydney, Australia

Record number of entries for Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games: 10 August 2000 The Sydney Paralympic Organising Committee (SPOC) has received a record number of entries from National Paralympic Committees (NPC) for the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games including 26 countries which did not compete in Atlanta. Based on the entries, which closed in mid-July, the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games is set to be the largest Paralympic Games ever staged with 123 countries confirmed to travel to Sydney to compete in the Games of the XI Paralympiad. A total of 103 countries competed in the 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Games and 83 countries in the 1992 Barcelona Paralympic Games. Xavi Gonzalez, General Manager of Sport and Games Operations for SPOC, who has been involved in the organisation of the Paralympic Games since Barcelona in 1992 said, "This is a fantastic response for Sydney. It is a significant increase on both the Atlanta and Barcelona Paralympic Games and reflects the strong growth of the Paralympic movement internationally." "This is the first time the Paralympic Games has been held in the Southern Hemisphere. I think the rest of the world has heard good things about the preparations for the Paralympic Games in Sydney and is looking forward to October." The 26 NPCs (or countries) which did not compete in Atlanta include: Barbados, Benin, Cambodia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guinea Republic, Iraq, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mongolia, Niger, Palestine, PNG, Philippines, Rwanda, Samoa, Sudan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Vanuatu and Vietnam. The Australian Paralympic team, announced on 27 July, will be the largest team ever to compete at a Paralympic Games with more than 400 athletes and team officials. As the host nation, Australia will field a team in each of the 18 sports on Sydney's program. NPCs from the United States of America, Germany, Great Britain, Canada, Japan and Spain have also confirmed teams of a significant size. The first Paralympic Games were held in Rome in 1960 and involved 400 athletes from 23 countries. Only athletes in wheelchairs were invited to compete. In Sydney this year, 4000 athletes from 123 countries are expected to compete across 18 sports in six disability categories. The final program for the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games is due for release at the end of August 2000. Countries competing in the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games 18 - 29 October 2000 Algeria Guinea Republic* PR China Angola Hong Kong, China Peru Argentina Hungary Philippines* Armenia Iceland Poland Australia India Portugal Austria Indonesia Puerto Rico Azerbaijan Iraq* Qatar Bahrain Ireland Rep. of Moldova Barbados* Iran Rep. of Panama Belarus Israel Romania Belgium Italy Russian Federation Benin* Japan Rwanda* Bermuda Jamaica Samoa* Bosnia Herzegovnia Jordan Saudi Arabia Brazil Kazakhstan Sierra Leone Bulgaria Kenya Singapore Burkina Faso Korea Slovakia Cambodia* Kuwait Slovenia Canada Kyrgyzstan South Africa Chile Laos* Spain Chinese Taipei Latvia Sri Lanka Columbia Lebanon* Sudan* Costa Rica* Lesotho* Sweden Cote D'Ivoire Libya Switzerland Croatia Lithuania Syrian Arab Republic Cuba Macau Thailand Cyprus Madagascar* Tunisia Czech Republic Malaysia Turkey* Denmark Mali* Turkmenistan* Ecuador Mauritania* Uganda Egypt Mexico Ukraine El Salvador* Mongolia* United Arab Emirates Estonia Morocco USA Faroe Islands Netherlands Uruguay Fiji New Zealand Vanuatu* Finland Niger* Venezuela FYR Macedonia Nigeria Vietnam* France Norway Yugoslavia Germany Oman Zimbabwe Great Britain Pakistan Greece Palestine* Guatemala* Papua New Guinea* *denotes countries which did not compete in Atlanta, but are confirmed to compete in Sydney 2000.

.

DilleSport main index Paralympic Games - Atlanta 1996 in Danish Paralympic Games - through times! Mail the Editor!