There are currently over a hundred Paralympic Sport Clubs around the U.S., and every two years youth with physical disabilities in these programs write essays so that they can be awarded a trip to the Paralympic Games. 

Paralympic Experience for Youth
This year there are kids watching the games in Whistler and Vancouver from all over the country.  The kids that are in attendance at the winter Paralympic Games may have only had the opportunity to participate in summer events; however, this is an opportunity for them to gain the Paralympic Experience.  

The kids learn that the Paralympic Games are not just about winning medals, the kids learn that the Paralympic and Olympic games are about achieving your personal best and representing your country with dignity.  

Adaptive Sports Competition
Many of the everyday adaptive sports competitions for youth with disabilities have limited numbers of representatives, so when these kids come and see 50 athletes competing for three medals it is a reminder that the games are about more than medals.  They are about Leadership, Education, Olympic Values and the ability of the athletes to bring back the experience to their communities.

Olympic Creed
Young kids who have earned the opportunity to attend the Paralympic Games are taught many things. However, the most important thing they can learn is the Olympic Creed:

"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win, but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph, but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered, but to have fought well."

Photo by Jeff Burley.