Wheelchair racing at the Olympics
Wheelchair racing at the Summer Olympics featured as exhibition (or demonstration) competitions at the multi-sport event, appearing within the Olympic athletics programme from 1984 to 2004.[1] On each occasion two track races were held: a men's 1500 metres race and a women's 800 metres race.[2] This was the first time events for disabled athletes have featured at the Summer Olympic Games,[3] with the Paralympic Games being the traditional venue for top level para-athletics. The wheelchair races were the second Olympic exhibition event for disabled athletes, following on from the disabled skiing at the 1984 Winter Olympics, held earlier that year.[4]
Athletes who finished in the top three of these competitions did not have the performances included in the overall medal count. However, unofficial medals were awarded to the competitors nevertheless in 1984 by Juan Antonio Samaranch, the International Olympic Committee president.[5][6] The events were dropped prior to the 2008 Beijing Olympics and multiple Paralympic gold medallist Chantal Petitclerc stated the decision was a major set-back for the sport, as she favoured its official integration as an Olympic sport.[7]
At the inaugural event in 1984 Sharon Hedrick broke the IPC world record to win the women's 800 m in a time of 2:15.73 minutes.[6] This was followed by two record performances in 1992, when Claude Issorat of France set a men's 1500 m record of 3:13.92 minutes and Denmark's Connie Hansen won the 800 m in a record 1:55.62 minutes.[8] The Olympic records for the event were set by Saúl Mendoza, who finished in 3:06.75 minutes to win the 2000 men's 1500 m race,[9] and Chantal Petitclerc, who won the last women's 800 m event in 1:53.66 minutes in 2004.[10] Issorat, Hedrick and Louise Sauvage each won two Olympic wheelchair races; Issorat and Sauvage had three Olympic podium finishes. The United States had the most success in the event, gathering eleven medals over the six editions.
Medalists
Men
Multiple medalists
| Rank |
Athlete |
Nation |
Olympics |
Gold |
Silver |
Bronze |
Total |
| 1 | Issorat, ClaudeClaude Issorat |  France (FRA) | 1992–2000 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 2= | Winkel, Paul vanPaul van Winkel | .svg.png) Belgium (BEL) | 1984–1988 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 2= | Mendoza, SaúlSaúl Mendoza |  Mexico (MEX) | 2000–2004 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Nietlispach, FranzFranz Nietlispach |  Switzerland (SUI) | 1992–1996 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Medalists by country
| Rank |
Nation |
Gold |
Silver |
Bronze |
Total |
| 1 | France (FRA) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 2= | Belgium (BEL) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 2= | Mexico (MEX) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 |  Germany (GER) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 |  United States (USA) | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 6 | Switzerland (SUI) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 7= |  Canada (CAN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 7= |  Thailand (THA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Women
Multiple medalists
| Rank |
Athlete |
Nation |
Olympics |
Gold |
Silver |
Bronze |
Total |
| 1 | Sauvage, LouiseLouise Sauvage |  Australia (AUS) | 1996–2004 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 2 | Hedrick, SharonSharon Hedrick | United States (USA) | 1984–1988 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Hansen, ConnieConnie Hansen |  Denmark (DEN) | 1988–1992 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Driscoll, JeanJean Driscoll | United States (USA) | 1992–1996 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | Wetterström, MonicaMonica Wetterström |  Sweden (SWE) | 1984–1992 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Cable, CandaceCandace Cable | United States (USA) | 1984–1988 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Medalists by country
| Rank |
Nation |
Gold |
Silver |
Bronze |
Total |
| 1 | United States (USA) | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| 2 | Australia (AUS) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 3 | Denmark (DEN) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Canada (CAN) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | Sweden (SWE) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 |  Japan (JPN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Mexico (MEX) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
References
- Participation and results data
- Specific
External links