Deaflympics
Encyclopedia
The Deaflympics are an International Olympic Committee
(IOC)-sanctioned event at which deaf athletes compete at an elite level. However, unlike the athletes in other IOC-sanctioned events (i.e., the Olympics, the Paralympics, and the Special Olympics), the Deaflympians cannot be guided by sounds (i.e., the starter's guns, bullhorn commands or referee whistles). The games have been organised by the Comité International des Sports des Sourds
(CISS, "The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf") since the first event.
. The event has been held every four years since, apart from a break for World War II, and an additional event, the Deaflympic Winter Games, was added in 1949. The games began as a small gathering of 148 athletes from nine European nations competing in the International Silent Games in Paris, France, in 1924; now, they have grown into a global movement.
Officially, the games were originally called the "International Games for the Deaf" from 1924 to 1965, but were sometimes referred to as the "International Silent Games". From 1966 to 1999 they were called the "World Games for the Deaf", and occasionally referred to as the "World Silent Games". From 2000, the games have been known by their current name "Deaflympics" (often mistakenly called the "Deaf Olympics").
To qualify for the games, athletes must have a hearing loss of at least 55 db in their "better ear". Hearing aids, cochlear implants and the like are not allowed to be used in competition, to place all athletes on the same level. Other examples of ways the games vary from hearing competitions are the manner in which they are officiated. To address the issue of Deaflympians not being able to be guided by sounds, certain sports use alternative methods of commencing the game. For example, the football referees wave a flag instead of blowing a whistle; on the track, races are started by using a light, instead of a starter pistol. It is also customary for spectators not to cheer or clap, but rather to wave – usually with both hands.
1989, Melbourne 2005 and Taipei
2009). The next summer games will be held in Athens
, Greece in 2013, and the next scheduled winter games will be in Vancouver
in 2015.
The 2011 Winter Games scheduled to be held in Vysoké Tatry
, Slovakia were cancelled due to the lack of readiness by the organizing committee to host the games. The International Committee of Deaf Sports filed a criminal complaint against the Slovak Deaflympics Organizing Committee and its President, Mr. Jaromír Ruda. The criminal complaint demands reimbursement of the funds that were transferred to the Slovak Deaflympics Organizing Committee from national deaf sports federations, to cover hotel accommodations and other Deaflympics-related expenses. According the Slovak newspaper, SME
, “Jaromír Ruda, head of the Slovak Organising Committee, [is] a champion of promises and someone who is accused of a 1.6 million Euro Deaflympics-related fraud”. In a letter to the United States Deaflympians, International Committee of Sports for the Deaf ICSD
President Craig Crowley expressed "his deep apologies for the cancellation of the 17th Winter Deaflympics. Currently, the Slovak Deaflympic Committee and the Slovakia Association of Deaf Sportsmen Unions have been suspended. Ruda was sentenced to a prison term of 13 years for defrauding 1.6 million € that should have been used for Winter Deaflympics.
The host cities and NOCs
for all past and scheduled games are as follows:
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
(IOC)-sanctioned event at which deaf athletes compete at an elite level. However, unlike the athletes in other IOC-sanctioned events (i.e., the Olympics, the Paralympics, and the Special Olympics), the Deaflympians cannot be guided by sounds (i.e., the starter's guns, bullhorn commands or referee whistles). The games have been organised by the Comité International des Sports des Sourds
Comité International des Sports des Sourds
Comité International des Sports des Sourds is the apex body organizing international sports events for the deaf, particularly the Deaflympics...
(CISS, "The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf") since the first event.
History
The Deaflympics are held every 4 years, and are the longest running multi-sport event excluding the Olympics themselves. The first games, held in Paris in 1924, were also the first ever international sporting event for athletes with a disabilityDisability
A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
. The event has been held every four years since, apart from a break for World War II, and an additional event, the Deaflympic Winter Games, was added in 1949. The games began as a small gathering of 148 athletes from nine European nations competing in the International Silent Games in Paris, France, in 1924; now, they have grown into a global movement.
Officially, the games were originally called the "International Games for the Deaf" from 1924 to 1965, but were sometimes referred to as the "International Silent Games". From 1966 to 1999 they were called the "World Games for the Deaf", and occasionally referred to as the "World Silent Games". From 2000, the games have been known by their current name "Deaflympics" (often mistakenly called the "Deaf Olympics").
To qualify for the games, athletes must have a hearing loss of at least 55 db in their "better ear". Hearing aids, cochlear implants and the like are not allowed to be used in competition, to place all athletes on the same level. Other examples of ways the games vary from hearing competitions are the manner in which they are officiated. To address the issue of Deaflympians not being able to be guided by sounds, certain sports use alternative methods of commencing the game. For example, the football referees wave a flag instead of blowing a whistle; on the track, races are started by using a light, instead of a starter pistol. It is also customary for spectators not to cheer or clap, but rather to wave – usually with both hands.
Individual sports
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Judo is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an... Karate is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,... Mountain bike A mountain bike or mountain bicycle is a bicycle created for off-road cycling. This activity includes traversing of rocks and washouts, and steep declines,... (starts in Athens 2013) Orienteering Orienteering is a family of sports that requires navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain, and normally moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a specially prepared orienteering map, which they... |
Taekwondo Taekwondo is a Korean martial art and the national sport of South Korea. In Korean, tae means "to strike or break with foot"; kwon means "to strike or break with fist"; and do means "way", "method", or "path"... Freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of amateur wrestling that is practised throughout the world. Along with Greco-Roman, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic games. It is, along with track and field, one of the oldest organized sports in history... Greco-Roman wrestling Greco-Roman wrestling is a style of wrestling that is practised worldwide. It was contested at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been included in every edition of the summer Olympics held since 1908. Two wrestlers are scored for their performance in three two-minute periods, which can... |
Team sports
- Basketball
- Beach VolleyballBeach volleyballBeach volleyball, or sand volleyball, is an Olympic team sport played by two teams of two players on a sand court divided by a net.Like volleyball, the object of the game is to send the ball over the net in order to ground it on the opponent’s court, and to prevent the same effort by the opponent....
- Football
- Volleyball
Host nations and cities
To date, the Deaflympic Games have been hosted by 36 cities in 21 countries, but by cities outside Europe on only five occasions (Washington D.C. 1965, Los Angeles 1985, ChristchurchChristchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
1989, Melbourne 2005 and Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
2009). The next summer games will be held in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Greece in 2013, and the next scheduled winter games will be in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
in 2015.
The 2011 Winter Games scheduled to be held in Vysoké Tatry
Vysoké Tatry (town)
Vysoké Tatry , informally Mesto Vysoké Tatry , is a town at the feet of the Slovak part of High Tatras in Slovakia including all the major resorts in that region...
, Slovakia were cancelled due to the lack of readiness by the organizing committee to host the games. The International Committee of Deaf Sports filed a criminal complaint against the Slovak Deaflympics Organizing Committee and its President, Mr. Jaromír Ruda. The criminal complaint demands reimbursement of the funds that were transferred to the Slovak Deaflympics Organizing Committee from national deaf sports federations, to cover hotel accommodations and other Deaflympics-related expenses. According the Slovak newspaper, SME
SME
SME may stand for:*Small and medium enterprises, a synonym for Small and Medium-sized Business *Subject matter expert, a work role description...
, “Jaromír Ruda, head of the Slovak Organising Committee, [is] a champion of promises and someone who is accused of a 1.6 million Euro Deaflympics-related fraud”. In a letter to the United States Deaflympians, International Committee of Sports for the Deaf ICSD
ICSD
ICSD may refer to:* Inorganic Crystal Structure Database* International Central Securities Depository* International Classification of Sleep Disorders* Ithaca City School District...
President Craig Crowley expressed "his deep apologies for the cancellation of the 17th Winter Deaflympics. Currently, the Slovak Deaflympic Committee and the Slovakia Association of Deaf Sportsmen Unions have been suspended. Ruda was sentenced to a prison term of 13 years for defrauding 1.6 million € that should have been used for Winter Deaflympics.
The host cities and NOCs
National Olympic Committee
National Olympic Committees are the national constituents of the worldwide Olympic movement. Subject to the controls of the International Olympic Committee, they are responsible for organizing their people's participation in the Olympic Games...
for all past and scheduled games are as follows:
Summer Deaflympics
| Year | Games | Host City | NOC |
| 1924 | I | Paris |  Early Modern France |
| 1928 | II | Amsterdam Amsterdam Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population... |
 Netherlands |
| 1931 | III | Nürnberg |  Germany |
| 1935 | IV | London |  United Kingdom |
| 1939 | V | Stockholm Stockholm Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area... |
 Sweden |
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| 1949 | VI | Copenhagen Copenhagen Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region... |
 Denmark |
| 1953 | VII | Brussels Brussels Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union... |
 Belgium |
| 1957 | VIII | Milan Milan Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,... |
 Italy |
| 1961 | IX | Helsinki Helsinki Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is... |
 Finland |
| 1965 | X | Washington DC |  United States |
| 1969 | XI | Belgrade Belgrade Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe... |
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| 1973 | XII | Malmö Malmö Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County... |
Sweden |
| 1977 | XIII | Bucharest Bucharest Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River.... |
 Romania |
| 1981 | XIV | Köln KOLN KOLN, digital channel 10, is the CBS affiliate in Lincoln, Nebraska. It operates a satellite station, KGIN, on digital channel 11 in Grand Island. KGIN repeats all KOLN programming, but airs separate commercials... |
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| 1985 | XV | Los Angeles | United States |
| 1989 | XVI | Christchurch Christchurch Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of... |
 New Zealand |
| 1993 | XVII | Sofia Sofia Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated... |
 Kingdom of Bulgaria |
| 1997 | XVIII | Copenhagen Copenhagen Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region... |
Denmark |
| 2001 | XIX | Rome | Italy |
| 2005 | XX | Melbourne |  Australia |
| 2009 2009 Summer Deaflympics The 2009 Summer Deaflympics, officially known as the 21st Summer Deaflympics, is an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from September 5 to September 15, 2009 in Taipei, Republic of China . It is the third Summer Deaflympics to be held in Asia/Pacific region... |
XXI | Taipei Taipei Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean... |
 Republic of China |
| 2013 | XXII | Athens Athens Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state... |
 Greece |
Winter Deaflympics
| Year | Games | Host City | NOC |
| 1949 | I | Seefeld Seefeld Seefeld can refer to several places:*Seefeld, Bavaria, a town in the district of Starnberg in Bavaria, Germany*Seefeld, Schleswig-Holstein, a municipality in the district of Rendsburg-Eckernförde in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany... |
 Austria |
| 1953 | II | Oslo Oslo Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King... |
 Norway |
| 1955 | III | Oberammergau Oberammergau Oberammergau is a municipality in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in Bavaria, Germany. The town is famous for its production of a Passion Play, its woodcarvers, and the NATO School.-Passion Play:... |
 Germany |
| 1959 | IV | Montana-Vermala |  Switzerland |
| 1963 | V | Åre Åre Åre is a locality and one of the leading Scandinavian ski resorts situated in Åre Municipality, Jämtland County, Sweden with 1,260 inhabitants in 2005. It is however, not the seat of the municipality, which is Järpen. 25% of the municipal industry is based on tourism, most notably the downhill... |
Sweden |
| 1967 | VI | Berchtesgaden Berchtesgaden Berchtesgaden is a municipality in the German Bavarian Alps. It is located in the south district of Berchtesgadener Land in Bavaria, near the border with Austria, some 30 km south of Salzburg and 180 km southeast of Munich... |
Germany |
| 1971 | VII | Adelboden Adelboden Adelboden is a municipality in the Frutigen-Niedersimmental administrative district in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland.-Geography:Adelboden lies in the west of the Berner Oberland, at the end of the valley of the Engstlige river, which flows in Frutigen into the Kander river.Adelboden is a... |
Switzerland |
| 1975 | VIII | Lake Placid Lake Placid, New York Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 2,638.... |
United States |
| 1979 | IX | Méribel Méribel Méribel is a ski resort in the Tarentaise Valley in the French Alps, situated near the town of Moutiers.Méribel refers to three neighbouring villages in the Les Allues commune of the Savoie département of France, near the town of Moûtiers , called Méribel Centre, Méribel-Mottaret and Méribel Village... |
Early Modern France |
| 1983 | X | Madonna di Campiglio Madonna di Campiglio Madonna di Campiglio is a village and a ski resort in northeast Italy. It is a frazione of the comune of Pinzolo. The village lies in the Val Rendena at an altitude of 1,522 m... |
Italy |
| 1987 | XI | Oslo Oslo Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King... |
Norway |
| 1991 | XII | Banff Banff, Alberta Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise.... |
 Canada |
| 1995 | XIII | Ylläs Ylläs Ylläs, or Yllästunturi in Finnish, is a high fell in the municipality of Kolari in Lapland Province of Finland. There are two villages near Ylläs: Äkäslompolo on the north side and Ylläsjärvi in the south. They are connected by a 11 km road, around the side of the fell... |
Finland |
| 1999 | XIV | Davos Davos Davos is a municipality in the district of Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of 11,248 . Davos is located on the Landwasser River, in the Swiss Alps, between the Plessur and Albula Range... |
Switzerland |
| 2003 | XV | Sundsvall Sundsvall -External links:* - Official site from Nordisk Familjebok - Sundsvalls tourist information bureau. - The alternative guide to Sundsvall. - Blog with photos from Sundsvall.... |
Sweden |
| 2007 | XVI | Salt Lake City | United States |
Vysoké Tatry (town) Vysoké Tatry , informally Mesto Vysoké Tatry , is a town at the feet of the Slovak part of High Tatras in Slovakia including all the major resorts in that region... |
 Slovakia |
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| 2015 | XVIII | open |