The Innsbruck Paralympic Winter Games were the first Winter Games organised by the International Coordinating Committee (ICC), which was formed on 15 March 1982, in Leysin, Switzerland.
Athletes with cerebral palsy were eligible to compete in the Winter Games for the first time.
Overall 419 Para athletes (325 men and 94 women) from 21 countries took part in 107 medal events across three sports.
Hosts Austria topped the medals table.
COMPETING NATIONS AND ATHLETES
The Innsbruck 1984 Paralympic Winter Games attracted 419 Para athletes (325 men and 94 women) from 21 countries.
With 59 Para athletes host Austria had the biggest delegation, followed by USA (51) and Switzerland (50).
Netherlands and Spain made their Paralympic Winter Games debut.
USA (18) and Austria (17) had the highest number of female athletes.
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SPORTS
There were 107 medal events across three sports: Para alpine skiing, Para cross-country skiing and ice sledge speed skating.
In Para alpine skiing there were 56 medal events with downhill events contested for the first time, alongside alpine combination, giant slalom, and slalom. In total 194 Para athletes from 21 countries contested Para alpine skiing medal events.
The 35 Para cross-country skiing medal events were contested by 194 athletes from 18 countries.
Sixteen ice sledge speed skating events attracted 40 athletes from seven countries.
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES
Four athletes each won four gold medals.
For the host nation Helmut Falch won all four Para alpine skiing medal events, as did USA's Paul Dibello, and Sweden's Gunilla Ahren.
Finland's Lahja Haemaelaeinen won all four medal events in ice sledge speed skating.
Results
Hosts Austria topped the medals table with 34 gold, 19 silver and 17 bronze medals. Finland (19 gold, nine silver, and six bronze) and Norway (15 gold, 13 silver, and 13 bronze) completed the top three.
Fourteen nations won medals with 11 winning at least one gold.
Austria dominated Para alpine skiing winning 26 gold medals, while Finland was the most successful Para cross-country skiing nation with 12 Paralympic titles. Norway won 30 of the available 46 medals in ice sledge speed skating.
Medals
The medals from the 1984 Winter Paralympic Games in Innsbruck were distinctive for their time, each one specially engraved to commemorate its unique sporting event.
On the obverse, the medal showcases a detailed pictogram depicting the occasion for which it was awarded. The reverse features the Olympic rings, along with the official event designation ‘III World Winter Games for the Physically Disabled’’ remarkably inscribed on it surface.
There was no traditional torch or official mascot incorporated in the 1984 Winter Paralympics.
Innsbruck 1984 News
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