The Paralympics have for too long been considered the poor cousin of the Olympics. It's always run after the main games and rarely gets anything like the media coverage.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Paralympics has always had to push the media into it being about sport and not focusing on the disability.
Let's not forget that the Paralympics, just like the Olympics, are built on a rich history.
I joke that the Olympics is the warm-up to the Paralympics.
Paralympic sport and other disability sport can and should be celebrated in its own right.
The Paralympic Games is about transforming our perception of the world.
The sentiment of those suggesting the Olympics and Paralympics be combined is no doubt well intentioned. But it also echoes the myth that disabled people want to be other than what we are - that we'd like nothing more than to be 'allowed in' with the able-bodied competitors.
I am so proud of being a Paralympian because I think the Games are a very good platform for disabled persons to perform themselves. Within the Paralympics movement, it's not just talk about excellence; it's not just talk about the competition. It's also talk about the equality and how your world accepts those disabled people.
For me, Paralympic sport isn't about being the best human being. It's about being the best human being with that particular level of disability.
Having loved sport my whole life, competing in a Paralympics would be a dream come true.
The Paralympic Games actually turned my whole mentality around about disability. When you're in the Paralympic athletes' village and there are 4,000 disabled people, you stop seeing disability. Totally.