Poor media coverage of Rio Paralympic Games is unacceptable

The athletes competing in the Paralympic Games did not receive the a tenth of the media attention that the Olympic athletes received earlier this summer.

After 11 days of competitions, the participation of 4,359 from 163 countries, 534 sports events and 23 different modalities, the Summer Paralympic Games in Brazil came to an end last Sunday.

After all the media-generated buzz about the Olympics, I had great expectations for the Paralympic Games. Imagine a world where disabled people can finally shine in the spotlight. Sponsors, awareness and so many other positive outcomes that could come from a well televised Paralympics.

Bummer! The media attitude towards the event was quite different than . Not even the opening ceremony was broadcast live in full, neither in Brazil – where the event was hosted – or anywhere else.

While it is true that the Paralympics is a considerably smaller event than the Olympics, it is sickening to see how the media worldwide lacked to give appropriate attention to it.

Let’s talk about double standards for a while. During the Olympic Games, both local antenna television and cable channels arranged their schedules around the sporting events. Every single country relocated programs, created special broadcasts, and even brought former athletes and sports commentators to discuss the events.

That was not the case for the Paralympic games. Even a bizarre story evolving the swimmer Ryan Lochte had greater repercussion on the media. I bet you didn’t even know that the United States delegation won 40 golden medals in the competition and placed fourth overall, standing being China, Great Britain and Ukraine. Sad, right?

The joy, enthusiasm and pride we felt for our athletes in the Olympic games was transmitted 24/7 on TV. We prized athletes for their accomplishments, recognized their efforts and validated every sacrifice they had to do to get to the podium. But what about the the Paralympic athletes?

Every single athlete in the Paralympics overcame their individual disabilities with great dedication and proved to the world that they are capable of achieving high results. Even higher performances than in some of the Olympics’ sports events.

For example, all three athletes that got to the podium in the 1500 meters-hurdles in the Paralympics, completed the event in less time than the golden medalist in the same event at the Olympic game. It is a shame that hardly anybody got to know about their accomplishments.

The media just missed a great opportunity to recognize and meet athletes who dribble even more adversities than Olympic athletes. Their lack of media coverage is just a reflect of how the society generally see people with disabilities: as less important. Inclusion is not only cool when it fits your agenda. Shame on you mainstream media. Shame on you.