Down memory lane: Vancouver 2010, the milestone Games

Nearly 1,200 media representatives covered the Games – an increase of 12 percent from the previous Paralympics Japan had the biggest audience with almost 538 million viewers, followed by Germany, which had nearly 400 million viewers 01 Mar 2022

Flag bearer Jean Labonte of Canada leads his team through the stadium during the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Vancouver Paralympic Winter Games.

By IPC

The 2010 Winter Paralympic Games held in Vancouver, British Columbia were a milestone as it was the 10th edition of the Winter Paralympics. While the Winter Games in 1976 at Örnsköldsvik, Sweden, set the ball rolling, the Vancouver 2010 Games in Canada, held from 12-21 March, opened a new chapter in the history of the Paralympic Winter Games.

The Games also proved a historic occasion for Canada as they not only organised the Winter Games for the first time but the country also came up with its best-ever performance in the Paralympic Winter Games.

The Games continued to grow in terms of participation and global reach as it not only attracted big crowd but also reached more spectators via live broadcast and highlight packages. The Games attracted a cumulative TV audience of 1.6 billion and 230,000 spectators.

In all, 502 Para athletes (381 men and 132 women) from 44 countries - an increase from the 476 athletes who participated in 2006 - competed in 64 medal events across five sports - Alpine Skiing, Biathlon, Cross-Country Skiing, Ice Sledge Hockey and Wheelchair Curling.

Animal spirit Sumi is greeted by children during the Opening Ceremony of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. © Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Argentina, Romania and Bosnia and Herzegovina made their Paralympic Winter Games debut while Serbia too took part as a separate National Paralympic Committee (NPC) after its split with Montenegro.

The Games were declared open at a ceremony themed as 'One inspires many' with a sell-out crowd of 60,000 packed into the stadium.

Germany topped the medals table with 24 medals, including 13 gold, five silver and six bronze. Though Russia won the most medals, they had to be satisfied second as they could manage only 12 gold medals. Hosts Canada finished third with 19 medals - 10 gold, five silver and four bronze. Slovakia (11-6-2-3) and Ukraine (19-5-8-6) completed the top five.

There were many outstanding performances during the 10-day event. Lauren Woolstencroft led Canada with five gold medals in the women’s standing Para Alpine Skiing events. Germany's Cross-Country Skier and Biathlete Verena Bentele too bagged five gold medals.

Despite starting as defending champions, Canada’s Ice Sledge Hockey team fell in the semi-finals to a very strong Japanese squad. In the final, the United States defeated Japan to win the gold medal.

Team USA celebrate their 2-0 win over Japan during the Ice Sledge Hockey gold medal game at the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. © Martin Rose/Bongarts/Getty Images

Host nation Canada took the gold medal in wheelchair curling, while Korea won the silver and Sweden the bronze. Among male participants, Canadian cross-country skier Brian McKeever won three gold medals.

While the participants registered some memorable moments in the field, the Games also made some achievements off the field. With ticket sales reaching 230,000 the Vancouver Games set a new Winter Paralympic Games record as far as ticket sales go.

Nearly 1,200 media representatives covered the Games – an increase of 12 percent from the previous Paralympics. Japan had the biggest audience with almost 538 million viewers, followed by Germany, which had nearly 400 million viewers.

Alpine skiing proved to be the most popular sport among viewers, garnering a total audience of more than 690 million. The IPC’s own online television channel, www.ParalympicSport.TV provided more than 437,000 live streams during competition time.

But more than that, Vancouver 2010 further expanded the reach of the Paralympic Winter Games and brought widespread awareness of sports for people with disabilities not only in Canada but around the world through record TV coverage.