History of Disability Athletics

Athletics, also known as track and field, is a collection of sports that involve running, throwing and jumping. The name is derived from the Greek word "athlon" meaning "contest".

When the first sports competitions began in Ancient Greece it was athletics that formed the main part of the games. It is the basic tests of speed and strength that still form the heart of athletics.

The International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) was founded in 1912 by 17 national athletic federations.

Athletics became a Paralympic Games sport in Rome, 1960 and has more events and competitors than any other sport in the Paralympic Games.

The current Athletics program for the Beijing Games in 2008 is