Australia at the 1972 Summer Paralympics
Encyclopedia
Australia
sent a team to compete at the 1972 Summer Paralympics
in Heidelberg
, West Germany
. They sent thirty seven competitors, twenty eight male and nine female.
and required the use of a wheelchair. This is in contrast to later Paralympics that include events for participants that fit into any of five different disability categories; amputation
, either congenital or sustained through injury or illness; cerebral palsy
; wheelchair
athletes; visual impairment
, including blindness
; Les autres, any physical disability that does not fall strictly under one of the other categories, for example dwarfism
or multiple sclerosis
. Each Paralympic sport then has its own classifications, dependent upon the specific physical demands of competition. Events are given a code, made of numbers and letters, describing the type of event and classification of the athletes competing.
Australia entered twenty one of it's thirty seven competitors, fifteen male and six female. They won eleven medals, three gold, four silver and four bronze.
won silver and Giuliano Koten of Italy
took the bronze medal.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
sent a team to compete at the 1972 Summer Paralympics
1972 Summer Paralympics
The 1972 Summer Paralympics, the fourth edition of the Paralympic Games, were held in Heidelberg, West Germany, from August 2 to 11, 1972.- Sports :As with previous Paralympics, the 1972 games were intended for wheelchair athletes only...
in Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
. They sent thirty seven competitors, twenty eight male and nine female.
Disability classifications
Athletes at the Paralympics in 1972 were all afflicted by spinal cord injuriesSpinal cord injury
A spinal cord injury refers to any injury to the spinal cord that is caused by trauma instead of disease. Depending on where the spinal cord and nerve roots are damaged, the symptoms can vary widely, from pain to paralysis to incontinence...
and required the use of a wheelchair. This is in contrast to later Paralympics that include events for participants that fit into any of five different disability categories; amputation
Amputation
Amputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma, prolonged constriction, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for...
, either congenital or sustained through injury or illness; cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
; wheelchair
Wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing...
athletes; visual impairment
Visual impairment
Visual impairment is vision loss to such a degree as to qualify as an additional support need through a significant limitation of visual capability resulting from either disease, trauma, or congenital or degenerative conditions that cannot be corrected by conventional means, such as refractive...
, including blindness
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
; Les autres, any physical disability that does not fall strictly under one of the other categories, for example dwarfism
Dwarfism
Dwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
or multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease in which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, leading to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms...
. Each Paralympic sport then has its own classifications, dependent upon the specific physical demands of competition. Events are given a code, made of numbers and letters, describing the type of event and classification of the athletes competing.
Archery
Australia entered ten of it's thirty seven competitors, eight male and two female. They won two medals, one silver and one bronze. 
Athletics
Australia entered twenty one of it's thirty seven competitors, fifteen male and six female. They won eleven medals, three gold, four silver and four bronze.Lawn Bowls
Australia entered only one of it's thirty seven competitors in lawn bowls. Magennis won the gold medal in the men's singles, Ure of Great BritainGreat Britain at the 1972 Summer Paralympics
Great Britain sent a delegation to compete at the 1972 Summer Paralympics in Heidelberg, West Germany. Teams from the nation are referred to by International Paralympic Committee as Great Britain despite athletes from the whole of the United Kingdom, including those from Northern Ireland, being...
won silver and Giuliano Koten of Italy
Italy at the 1972 Summer Paralympics
Italy sent a delegation to compete at the 1972 Summer Paralympics in Heidelberg, West Germany. They sent twenty five competitors, twenty male and five female.-Disability classifications:...
took the bronze medal.