Wheelchair racing at the Summer Olympics featured as 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]
| Wheelchair racing at the Olympic Games | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Sport | Athletics (demonstration) |
| Gender | Men and women |
| Years held | 1984 – 2004 |
| Olympic record | |
| Men | 3:06.75 min Saúl Mendoza (2000) |
| Women | 1:53.66 min Chantal Petitclerc (2004) |
Unofficial medals were awarded to the competitors 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
editMen
edit| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 Los Angeles |
 Paul van Winkel (BEL)
|
 Randy Snow (USA)
|
 André Viger (CAN)
|
| 1988 Seoul |
 Mustapha Badid (FRA)
|
Paul van Winkel (BEL)
|
Craig Blanchette (USA)
|
| 1992 Barcelona |
Claude Issorat (FRA)
|
 Franz Nietlispach (SUI)
|
Michael Noe (USA)
|
| 1996 Atlanta |
Claude Issorat (FRA)
|
Scot Hollonbeck (USA)
|
Franz Nietlispach (SUI)
|
| 2000 Sydney |
 Saúl Mendoza (MEX)
|
Claude Issorat (FRA)
|
Heinz Frei (SUI)
|
| 2004 Athens |
 Robert Figl (GER)
|
Saúl Mendoza (MEX)
|
 Rawat Tana (THA)
|
Multiple medalists
edit| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Claude Issorat | France (FRA) |
1992–2000 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 2= | Paul van Winkel | Belgium (BEL) |
1984–1988 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 2= | Saúl Mendoza | Mexico (MEX) |
2000–2004 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Franz Nietlispach |  Switzerland (SUI) |
1992–1996 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Medalists by country
edit| 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
edit| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 Los Angeles |
Sharon Hedrick (USA)
|
 Monica Wetterström (SWE)
|
Candace Cable (USA)
|
| 1988 Seoul |
Sharon Hedrick (USA)
|
 Connie Hansen (DEN)
|
Candace Cable (USA)
|
| 1992 Barcelona |
Connie Hansen (DEN)
|
Jean Driscoll (USA)
|
Monica Wetterström (SWE)
|
| 1996 Atlanta |
 Louise Sauvage (AUS)
|
Jean Driscoll (USA)
|
Cheri Becerra (USA)
|
| 2000 Sydney |
Louise Sauvage (AUS)
|
 Wakako Tsuchida (JPN)
|
Ariadne Hernández (MEX)
|
| 2004 Athens |
Chantal Petitclerc (CAN)
|
Eliza Stankovich (AUS)
|
Louise Sauvage (AUS)
|
Multiple medalists
edit| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Louise Sauvage | Australia (AUS) |
1996–2004 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 2 | Sharon Hedrick | United States (USA) |
1984–1988 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Connie Hansen | Denmark (DEN) |
1988–1992 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Jean Driscoll | United States (USA) |
1992–1996 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | Monica Wetterström | Sweden (SWE) |
1984–1992 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Candace Cable | United States (USA) |
1984–1988 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Medalists by country
edit| 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
edit- Participation and results data
- Athletics Women's 800 metres Wheelchair Medalists. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-22.
- Athletics Men's 1,500 metres Wheelchair Medalists. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- Specific
- ^ Wheelchair Athletics. OSAV. Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- ^ Disabled Sport: Born of the War. Chantal Petitclerc. Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- ^ A History and Background of Disability Sport. Texas Woman's University. Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- ^ Honours List for the XIVth Olympic Winter Games (PDF) (PDF). Olympic Review. 1984. p. 143. Retrieved 2014-05-12.
- ^ Sanders, Barry A. (2013-10-14). The Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games. Pg. 113. Arcadia Publishing.
- ^ a b Wheelchair Mark Broken LOS ANGELES, Aug. 11 (AP) - Sharon Hedrick of the United. The New York Times (1984-08-12). Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- ^ Wheelchair racing dropped from Beijing Games. CBC Sports. Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- ^ OLYMPICS / Barcelona 1992: Olympic Round-Up: Wheelchair events . The Independent (1992-08-03). Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- ^ Hot Wheels. Sports Illustrated (2000-09-28). Retrieved on 2014-05-12.
- ^ Petitclerc, Huot earn Paralympic gold. Canadian Press (2004-09-21). Retrieved on 2014-05-12.