The Paralympics got underway yesterday in Beijing, but the U.S. team is competing under a cloud of litigation. A few Paralympians are suing the United States Olympic Committee for discrimination, claiming that the U.S.O.C. fails to provide the same level of financial support to Paralympic athletes compared to other Olympians. The plaintiffs argue that they receive substantially lower stipends than Olympians, which limits their ability to train and be competitive. They point out that other countries are much more generous with their support of Paralympic athletes, resulting in more medals for those nations.
While it’s true that the Olympics generate far more revenue, the U.S.O.C. has never shown much interest in cultivating a wider audience for the Paralympics. If the games can’t be watched on television, people aren’t going to care and corporations aren’t going to be interested in being official Paralympic sponsors. If ESPN can market the X Games, I’m not sure why the same can’t be done with the Paralympics. And why can’t the Paralympics be part of the Olympic Games? That alone would increase viewership. The additional logistics should be manageable, given the already extensive preparations required for a modern Olympics event.
