The Third Workshop

A summary was presented of results from The Nippon Foundation Paralympic Research Group's survey "The General Public's Awareness and Interest in the Paralympics" conducted in Japan, the United States, Australia, South Korea, Germany, and France.

The results of the survey are available here.

Experts from various fields who participated in the workshop made the following comments.
・The survey results show that experience of sports for people with disabilities leads to increased interest and a change in values. Areas to focus on in the future are increasing opportunities to experience these sports, for example in physical education classes at schools, and communicating what makes Paralympic sports enjoyable in simple and informative ways, for example through easily comprehensible explanations of complicated rules. The role of people who can spread information and support for the Paralympics is just as important as the presence of star athletes. Paralympic education needs to be established, and Paralympic literacy increased through education on Paralympic ideology and history, including the "history of losing".
･Media coverage should be based on respect for the high performance of athletes. Internet coverage can be greatly improved.
・For 2020, the strongest expectation is not for the number of medals, but for social change. The Paralympics are a stronger tool for changing Japanese society than the Olympics.
・For 2020, sports for people with disabilities in Asia as well as in Japan should be promoted.
・In order for the energy directed towards the 2020 Games to become a force that can make contributions lasting beyond 2020, the organizational and promotional elements of sports associations need to be strengthened.