Ornskoldsvik 1976

Sixteen years after the inaugural Paralympic Games, the first Paralympic Winter Games were held in Sweden, bringing together 198 athletes from 16 countries who competed in two sports – Para alpine skiing and Para cross-country skiing.

Winter sports for athletes with physical disabilities gradually emerged after World War II, as large numbers of injured soldiers and civilians tried to return to their skiing activities.

Early pioneers, such as double-leg amputee Sepp Zwicknagl from Austria, experimented with skiing using prostheses. Other innovations were seen in ski equipment design, such as three-track skiing using crutches. This led to the first course in three-track skiing in February 1948 that included 17 participants from all over Austria.

By the 1970s, cross-country skiing competitions began, and in 1974, the first-ever world championships were held in Grand Bornand, France. They featured alpine and Nordic competitions for athletes with amputations and vision impairments.

COMPETING NATIONS AND ATHLETES

The first Paralympic Winter Games attracted 198 athletes (161 men and 37 women) from 16 nations.

With 32 Para athletes, West Germany had the biggest delegation, followed by Finland (26) and Austria (24).

With seven Para athletes, Norway and Sweden had the highest number of female athletes.

SPORTS

The Games showcased two sports – Para alpine skiing and Para cross-country skiing. The standing class featured athletes with amputations, while there was also a vision impaired class.

In total 78 athletes from 12 countries competed in 28 Para alpine skiing medal events covering slalom, giant slalom and an Alpine combination event.

Para cross-country skiing events took place over 5km and 10km, with relays featuring three athletes per team over the same distances. In total, 125 Para athletes from 15 countries competed in the 25 Para cross-country skiing medal events.

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES

Nine athletes won three gold medals. On home snow, Sweden's Birgitta Sund won three Paralympic titles in Para cross-country skiing.

In Para alpine skiing, the West German duo of Annemie Schneider and Petra Merkott, Czechoslovakia's Eva Lemezova, and the Swiss pair of Irene Moillen and Heinze Moser, won all three medal events in their respective classes.

Norway's Morten Langeroed and the Finnish duo of Teuvo Sahi and Pertti Sankilampi won three out of three medal events in Para cross-country skiing.

Results

West Germany topped the medals table at the first Paralympic Winter Games, winning 10 gold, 12 silver and six bronze medals, to finish ahead of Switzerland (10 gold, one silver, and one bronze) and Finland (eight gold, seven silver, and seven bronze) in second and third respectively.

Nine nations won medals with Austria, who finished sixth overall, winning 35 medals (five gold, 16 silver, 14 bronze), the most of any competing country.

In Para alpine skiing, Switzerland topped the medals table with nine gold medals, ahead of West Germany and Austria.

Finland (eight gold, seven silver, and seven bronze) topped the Para cross-country skiing medals table ahead of Norway and Sweden.

Country

Gold

Silver

Bronze

FRG

SUI

FIN

NOR

SWE

Medals

The medals awarded at the Örnsköldsvik 1976 Paralympic Winter Games showcased the official emblem of the event, depicting two skiers alongside an eagle carrying a shield above water, which served as the emblem for the Games.

Each medal was suspended from a ribbon in blue and yellow, reflecting the colours of Sweden’s national flag, the host country. At the centre of the design sat the Games’ emblem in addition to OS 97 written in braille on the face of the medal.