Why don't ParaOlympians get more coverage and Praise ?

[Fluke]

Considering that Males who identify as Females can participate in the Female Olympic games , can abled people who identify as being disabled participate in the para Olympics? 

[Faraday]

1 hour ago, Fluke said:

Para Olympians do not reach the same heights and levels as non para Olympians .

Its a bit different watching a man running the 100 meters in under ten seconds and watching a one legged man running the 100 meters in 23 seconds 

Oh dear, what a dreadful post.

[Faraday]

8 minutes ago, Fluke said:

Considering that Males who identify as Females can participate in the Female Olympic games , can abled people who identify as being disabled participate in the para Olympics? 

Comment as per my previous post.

[Fluke]

4 minutes ago, Faraday said:

Oh dear, what a dreadful post.

Why do you consider it to be "dreadful".

Do you think that disabled people can run as fast as abled people ?

[birdman]

The reason why is quite obvious to me.

There is not as much money to be made by different advertisers and there for it is not

so interesting for them.

As far as the athletes go and their commitment i do not think there is a difference at all.

 

[DwizzleyMatthews]

1 hour ago, Fluke said:

Did you watch this years para Olympics at all ?

You could have easily have found a free live stream on line .

How many of this years Para Olympic events did you watch ?

You do know that today is only day 4 of the Para Olympics and there are 8 days left ??

[Fluke]

2 minutes ago, DwizzleyMatthews said:

You do know that today is only day 4 of the Para Olympics and there are 8 days left ??

I didnt know that , I haven't been watching and have no interest .

I didnt even know that the games were being played

[DwizzleyMatthews]

Just now, Fluke said:

I didnt know that , I haven't been watching and have no interest .

I didnt even know that the games were being played

So you know nothing about the Para Olympics ??

[Smithydog]

A lot of the difference is down to how we as a society still view the different athletes and more importantly, how the advertising world still projects a dominance of "beautiful" people to support the products they are advertising. To often, advertising is about creating a dream image that people will want to buy into and not necessarily reality.

The advertising dollar is what supports the media bids for rights. Without it, networks cannot pay the substantial costs involved in getting the rights and then operating an extensive broadcast, even though much of the footage is supplied by the organising committee. Simply, they can get more money for ads from so called "full bodied athletes" (not my words), then those who live with a disability, as they fit the bill for the image the bulk of advertising sadly still projects.

The Olympics also has a longer history, has more athletes and countries participating and so has a bit of a head start. It is pleasing to see media rights and exposure has gone up for Tokyo, but acceptance as an equal is still a long way off, as is the size of demand to see it. Money from advertising has a very large pull for commercial networks.

[HolyCowCm]

36 minutes ago, Fluke said:

I didnt know that , I haven't been watching and have no interest .

I didnt even know that the games were being played

Here is a question. Did you even watch any of the regular Olympics? And if so how much and what? I am glad this topic came up as am watching it right now. For the regular Olympics I watch a lot of it everyday.

[Fluke]

1 minute ago, HolyCowCm said:

Here is a question. did you even watch any of the regular Olympics? And if so how much and what? I am glad this topic came up as am watching it right now. For the regular Olympics I watch a lot of it everyday.

No, I didnt watch any of the regular Olympics either , although coincidentally enough, I did watch the opening ceremony because I was eating in a Japanese restaurant and they had it live on the television 

[HolyCowCm]

Don't get on me for asking this as just entered my mind. Do they hand out Olympic condoms for this event like the regular one? It is an honest question and these people are human beings like anyone else.

[gummy]

3 minutes ago, HolyCowCm said:

Don't get on me for asking this as just entered my mind. Do they hand out Olympic condoms for this event like the regular one? It is an honest question and these people are human beings like anyone else.

You had me puzzled there so I googled it. Never realised they handed them out free

[HolyCowCm]

3 minutes ago, Fluke said:

No, I didnt watch any of the regular Olympics either , although coincidentally enough, I did watch the opening ceremony because I was eating in a Japanese restaurant and they had it live on the television 

I had a great time watching some with my son especially the basketball and diving. Quality wonderful time you can't pay to get.

[HolyCowCm]

4 minutes ago, gummy said:

You had me puzzled there so I googled it. Never realised they handed them out free

Yeah, the Olympics are famous for being a Sodom and Gomorrahh. Rumor is it would make Pattaya look like a Christian Monastery. Ooops, strike that example as that probably tops the Sodom and Gomorrahh chart. Makes Pattaya look like a school of virgins.

[Smithydog]

28 minutes ago, HolyCowCm said:

Don't get on me for asking this as just entered my mind. Do they hand out Olympic condoms for this event like the regular one? It is an honest question and these people are human beings like anyone else.

They did in Sydney in the gift packs for the athletes. Can't say for the rest of the Olympics.

[HolyCowCm]

Just now, Smithydog said:

They did in Sydney in the gift packs for the athletes. Can't say for the rest of the Olympics.

Paralympics?

[Smithydog]

2 minutes ago, HolyCowCm said:

Paralympics?

Yeh...just saw my typo!

Yes, I was talking about the gift packs for the Paralympians.

Don't know how many were used but I do know the ones allocated to the Olympians had to be re-ordered as they ran out of stock of surplus from their gift bags!

[HolyCowCm]

1 hour ago, Smithydog said:

Yeh...just saw my typo!

Yes, I was talking about the gift packs for the Paralympians.

Don't know how many were used but I do know the ones allocated to the Olympians had to be re-ordered as they ran out of stock of surplus from their gift bags!

I would bet they used as many as they could get on. Part of the allure and best time of their lives probably. We should all just be very happy that NCC has no disabilities and was or became a Paralympian or a regular Olympian.

[colinneil]

2 hours ago, DwizzleyMatthews said:

So you know nothing about the Para Olympics ??

Not at all mate, he is just doing his usual anti comments, to wind other members up, pathetic really.

[Fluke]

12 minutes ago, colinneil said:

Not at all mate, he is just doing his usual anti comments, to wind other members up, pathetic really.

Although I am not anti para Olympics and have not said that . 

I have merely voiced my opinion as to why the regular Olympics are more popular than the para Olympics . 

[Faraday]

1 hour ago, Fluke said:

Although I am not anti para Olympics and have not said that . 

I have merely voiced my opinion as to why the regular Olympics are more popular than the para Olympics . 

Except you know nothing much about it, haven't watched any of & post insensitive comments.

 

[Fluke]

12 minutes ago, Faraday said:

Except you know nothing much about it, haven't watched any of & post insensitive comments.

Maybe its just that some people are way too sensitive and would rather hear lies and untruths and infactual statements ?

   Maybe I should have stated that disabled people can run the 100 meters as quick as abled runners and that the reason why people don't watch the para Olympics is because the are all racist ?

[Stonker]

21 hours ago, gummy said:

The Tokyo Olympics just gone was two weeks of unprecedented coverage by the media worldwide. Everyday on BBC News the front pages were peppered with Olympic achievements by the UK participants, a gold medal won made it headline news. These Olympians did of course deserve praise for reaching the highest echelons of their chosen sport but not without 100 % dedication and devotion that started in nearly all cases from a young age. They certainly deserved the praise bestowed upon them.

However in the ongoing paraolympics  dedicated sportsman hardly receive a mention. In fact today on BBC news Ronaldo gets more coverage, another dedicated sportsman true, but now extremely wealthy  but able bodied.  The media have obviously decided that disable sportsman are not as news worthy, an utter disgrace in my book.

Many of these paraolympians where born with a disability, some very severe. Many also have suffered sever disability through accidents during their life or due to enemy action if they were in the armed forces. They have now had to come to terms with those disabilities 100% of their time . That is something the able bodied olympians did not have to cope with. On top of all that they have now dedicated their lives to their choosen sport 100% yet always take second place in media exposure.

My thoughts are that these paraolympians are worth double to any other able bodied olympian and the media such as the BBC should be called out for their disgraceful coverage of the Paraolympics and next time in Paris give equal coverage to both types of olympic games. 

To answer the original question, I don't think it has anything to do with prejudice at all but is simply down to interest, for two simple reasons.

 

First, the Olympics are simply for the best in the world in a selected sport, with the only categories being by gender.

 

So the best male or female runner over 100m, 200m, etc or, unusually, the best horse rider, regardless of gender, in dressage, eventing, and show jumping. 

 

So to see the best in your favoured event or sport you only watch one event, or at the most two.

 

In the Paralympics, though, there are a massive number of categories and classifications - in athletics, for example, there are 20 track and 24 field categories for every event for each gender, so to see the best in your favourite event you'd watch at least twenty events, maybe forty four!

 

Secondly, interest inevitably comes to a great extent from those who've played or followed a particular sport themselves, whether it's running a marathon or playing hockey, and seeing the standard your "peers" have achieved.

In the Olympics they're going to be the best out of a potential 3 billion or more, so that's a potential 3 billion seeing what they could have achieved.

In the Paralympics, though, there are far fewer in each category - in some events potentially a maximum of a few hundred million, in others just a few millon or less.

That's not to play down their achievements or dedication as they're still the best in their category, but their category represents far less people.

 

It's got nothing to do with prejudice, as you and others seem to like to think it is, but it's simply about the numbers watching or interested in any event in the Olympics or Paralympics reflecting the numbers participating in any event done in the Olympics or Paralympics.

 

More people are interested in watching the 100 metres than are interested in watching, say, the 50km racewalk or the Modern Pentathlon.

 

That doesn't make those watching or not watching them prejudiced, or the media "an utter disgrace" for not giving them equal coverage.

[HolyCowCm]

15 minutes ago, Stonker said:

To answer the original question, I don't think it has anything to do with prejudice at all but is simply down to interest, for two simple reasons.

First, the Olympics are simply for the best in the world in a selected sport, with the only categories being by gender.

So the best male or female runner over 100m, 200m, etc or, unusually, the best horse rider, regardless of gender, in dressage, eventing, and show jumping. 

So to see the best in your favoured event or sport you only watch one event, or at the most two.

In the Paralympics, though, there are a massive number of categories and classifications - in athletics, for example, there are 20 track and 24 field categories for every event for each gender, so to see the best in your favourite event you'd watch at least twenty events, maybe forty four!

Secondly, interest inevitably comes to a great extent from those who've played or followed a particular sport themselves, whether it's running a marathon or playing hockey, and seeing the standard your "peers" have achieved.

In the Olympics they're going to be the best out of a potential 3 billion or more, so that's a potential 3 billion seeing what they could have achieved.

In the Paralympics, though, there are far fewer in each category - in some events potentially a maximum of a few hundred million, in others just a few millon or less.

That's not to play down their achievements or dedication as they're still the best in their category, but their category represents far less people.

It's got nothing to do with prejudice, as you and others seem to like to think it is, but it's simply about the numbers watching or interested in any event in the Olympics or Paralympics reflecting the numbers participating in any event done in the Olympics or Paralympics.

More people are interested in watching the 100 metres than are interested in watching, say, the 50km racewalk or the Modern Pentathlon.

That doesn't make those watching or not watching them prejudiced, or the media "an utter disgrace" for not giving them equal coverage.

I did not think it was so easily seen as covered, but after looking yesterday AIS is covering it almost the  same as the regular Olympics free for 3 channels. seems selective on what is been covered, but swimming and wheel chair racing is interesting for me so far.