The 2015 ASEAN PARA GAMES 3.12.2015

The 1992 Summer Paralympics 22.4.1992

The 1992 Summer Paralympics (Juegos Paralímpicos de Verano de 1992; Catalan: Jocs Paralímpics d'estiu de 1992) were the ninth Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. In addition, the 1992 Paralympic Games for Persons with mental handicap were held immediately after the regular Paralympics in the Spanish capital, Madrid.

The 1992 Winter Paralympics, Tignes & Albertville, France 9.12.1991

The 1992 Winter Paralympics (French: Les Ve Jeux paralympiques d'hiver) were the fifth Winter Paralympics. They were the first winter Paralympics to be celebrated concurrently with the Olympic Games. They were also the first ever Paralympics at any event in France. They were held in Tignes and Albertville, France, from March 25 to April 1, 1992. For the first time, demonstration events in Alpine and Nordic Skiing for athletes with an intellectual disability and Biathlon for athletes with a visual impairment were held.

The bird logo was designed by Jean-Michel Folon. The official mascot was Alpy, designed by Vincent Thiebaut, represented the summit of the Grande Motte mountain in Tignes. Alpy was shown on a mono-ski to demonstrate its athleticism and the colours of white, green and blue were used to represent purity/snow, hope/nature and discipline/the lake.

The 2012 London Paralympic Games - Disabled Olympic Games 7.5.2012

The London Paralympics will begin on 29 August 2012, when disabled athletes will take part in the sporting event in the world of disabled worlds largest multinational sports. Staging the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games is a unique and inspiring experience. It is also an honour, one that the UK last enjoyed in 1948. More than 50 years on, they will host the greatest sporting and cultural show on earth again. It is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. They will have the chance to show the country, the world, and themselves, at their best. The International Olympic Committee says that London 2012 will enable the country to provide facilities and services for elite athletes, as well as encouraging participation in sport well after the 2012 Games are over. The Olympic Park in East London "will become a model of social inclusion, opening up opportunities for education, cultural and skills development and jobs for people across London and Great Britain" says the IOC. The Paralympic Games in London will have 11 events within the main Olympic Park in Stratford - athletics, swimming, table tennis, wheelchair rugby, goal ball, wheelchair fencing, archery, seven-a-side and five-a-side football, track cycling and wheelchair tennis.  Power lifting, judo, wheelchair basketball, boccia, sitting volleyball will all take place at the nearby ExCeL Centre, equestrian events at Greenwich Park and shooting at the Royal Artillery Barracks.

Internationally successful disabled athletes from Finland got their own stamps on 7^th May 2012. The two Finnish stamps in the Disabled Sports miniature sheet on the displayed FDC depict Leo-Pekka Tahti, the World Record holder in wheelchair racing, World Champion and Paralympic gold medallist, and Saana-Maria Sinisalo, an archer who has finished in points winning places in the World Championships. Both the athletes have high hopes of winning medals at the next Paralympics in London in 2012. In addition to the stamps, the miniature sheets depict other successful disabled athletes: goal ball players Petri Posio and Erkki Miinala, judoka Jani Kallunki, cyclist Jarmo Ollanketo, and pilot Marko Tormanen. Klaus Welp designs the stamp. The miniature sheet will contain the text “Disabled Sports” in Finnish and Swedish Braille, together with 1st class indications. My friend Ella gave this wonderful FDC to me.