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"America doesn't support
its athletes, Americans do"
The Paralympics are designed for the Physically
Disabled Athlete in both the Summer and Winter
Games. They compete in almost all of the events
of the Olympic Games.
The athletes in Judo are Blind and Visually
Impaired and compete with the same rules as
the sighted athletes, the only difference is
the beginning of the match where both competitors
hold on to each other, at that time the referee
says "Hajime" (begin). Both male and
female athletes compete in Judo.
At the 2000 Paralympic Games the United States
Paralympic Judo Team won 2 Gold, 1 Silver and
a Bronze Medal in Sydney, Australia. Team USA
won top honors as the Number 1 team in the World
and the 2 Gold Medals were a first for America
since Judo was introduced in 1964 and have not
been matched with the sighted team.
The 2004 results in Athens where also momentious
with the winning of one Silver and two Bronze
Medals continuing to prove that blind and visually
impaired individuals can compete and win at
the Olympic level (Paralympics).
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