Summer Olympic Games

By Kenneth Beare

The Summer Olympic Games will be held in Beijing, China from August 8 to August 24. Competitors from around the world will compete for the gold, silver or bronze medals. For some athletes, winning is not a real possibility. However, they will strive to set personal and / or national bests in their events. Of course, many world records will also be broken during these games. The intensely competitive nature of the games, the strong national pride involved and the challenge in facing the best athletes from around the world combine to demand the top performances from each individual.

In a world where soccer (football), basketball, golf and tennis dominate television broadcasts, the Summer Olympic Games provide a chance to observe sports not usually covered. When was the last time you watched water polo, or fencing? Chances are you watched them during the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Greece. In this age when many people are fortunate enough to have cable TV connections, spectators can watch a wide variety of athletic competitions.

Athletics and wrestling are probably the oldest sports in the Olympic Games. The tradition of these sports goes back to the original games held in ancient Greece over 2500 years ago. Some of my favorite events include the javelin throw, the high jump and the pole vault, as well as the hurdles. There will also be a wide variety of water sports that include canoeing, sailing and diving. Naturally, swimming is probably the most popular water sport with a wide variety of competitive events including backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle and more.

The summer games also include a number of events that have recently been introduced to the games. Kayaking and mountain biking, baseball and beach volleyball are just a few. I certainly haven't mentioned all the sports - who would want to miss gymnastics - but you get the idea. Turn on your TV, relax and enjoy a moment of peace and togetherness in this struggling world of ours. The Summer Olympic Games provides an example that we all should follow: competition with respect.

Источник: http://esl.about.com/od/readingintermediate/a/r_olympic.htm

IX. Внимательно прочитайте один из текстов (I–V) и передайте его содержание на английском языке в 10-12 предложениях.

Text I. The Olympic games have a very long history. They began in 777 bc. in Greece and took place every 4 years for nearly 12 century at Olympia. All the cities in Greece sent their best athletes to Olympia to compete in the Games. For the period of the games all the wars stopped. So the O.G. became the symbol of peace and friendship. In 394 A. D. The Games were abolished. The idea to revive the Games came from a Frenchman Baron Pierre de Caubertin who pointed out of the significance of sports and its educational value. He said: "The important thing in the O.G. is not winning, but taking part". In 1896 the 1st modern O.G. took place. The competitions were held in Greece to symbolize the continuation of the old tradition. The same year the International Olympic Committee was set up. Each country has its Nation Olympic Committee. Summer and winter Games are held separately. Thousands of athletes, journalists and guests come to the games. Russia joined the O.G. movement in the 1952. Since then it has won lot of gold, silver and bronze medals. In 1980 Moscow hosted 22d O.G. Nowadays, major cities compete to be the host of O.G. not just for the win. The Games have also become politically important.

Text II. In 1453 before Christ the first games were held in Olympia. Beginning with approximately 776 before Christ the games were organised every fourth year. These sports consisted of running, wrestling and other exercises. The favourite games of that time were horse-racing and jumping. The ancient winners got wreaths of palm leaves. The modern Olympic Games began again in 1896. They take place every four years. They cannot take place in a country which is at war, and during the two world wars there were no Olympic Games. So except in 1916, 1940 and 1944, the Olympic Games have been held every leap year. Women's events started in 1912. Winter Olympic Games first took place in 1924. The Games have been held in many countries. The 22nd Olympic Games were held in Moscow in 1980. The international Olympic Committee, which was set up and began to work in 1896, chooses the country and the city for the Olympic Games to be held in. The 26th Olympic Games were held in 1996 in Atlanta in the USA. It was a great sport event. There were competitions in practically all summer sports. Russian sportsmen took an active part in these Games. They won a lot of medals and we are very proud of them. The Games were organised in a proper way. It was a wonderful festival of sport, health, peace and friendship.

Text III. The history of Olympic games goes back to Ancient Greece. They began in 776 B.C. (that is more than 2700 years ago) and took place for about 1200 years every four year, at Olympia in Greece. It was a great athletic festival including many different kinds of sports: running, boxing, discus throwing, wrestling and others. The Olympics were organized up to the year of 391. In 394 A.D. the Games stopped. Then fifteen hundred years later, in 1894, a Frenchman, Baron Pierre de Coubertn, managed to persuade people from fifteen countries to start the Olympic Games again. The International Olympic Commitee was set up in 1894, and the first of the modern series of Games took place in Athens two years later, in 1896. More than two thousands competitors from twenty-two different countries took part in them. There were competitions in many kinds of sports: running, jumping, boxing, swimming, football and others. Since then, the number of competing athlets has increased each time. The Olympic Games cannot take place in countries at war. That is why there were no Olympic Games during the two world wars. The International Olympic Commitee in Switzerland chooses where each Olympic Games will take place. They ask the city chosen to be the host. Summer and Winter Olympic Games are held separately, in different countries. Winter Olympic Games first took place in 1924. At the Winter Games many teams from different countries take part in competitions in figure-skating, skiing, hockey and other winter sports. Since 1936 the opening ceremony has been celebrated by lightning a flame which is called "Olympic Flame". The 22-nd Summer Olympic Games were held in Russia, Moscow in 1980. It was for the first time that the Olympic Games were held in our country.

Text IV. The word's greatest international sports games are known as the Olympic Games. They are held once every four years. The Olympic Games began in Olympia nearly 1,200 years ago in Olympia. They were for men only. In 1896 the first International Olympic Games were organized in Olympia. The Games opening ceremony is celebrated by lighting a flame called the "Olympic flame". The Olympic motto is "Faster, Higher, Stronger." The Olympic symbol is five interlocking circles colored blue, yellow, black, green and red. In 1980 the Olympic Games were organized in our country in the Moscow. The first Winter Olympic Games were hold in France in the city Shamoni in 1924. Last Winter Olympic Games were hold in the USA in the Salt-Lake city, state UTA from 8th to 24th February 2002. Russian athletes took part in this sports competition. Russia won 16 medals (6 gold, 6 silver, 4 bronze). It is the 4th result. The first result achieved Germany with 35 medals.

Text V. London was host for the first time in 1908. With 1,500 competitors from 19 nations, the Games were by now an institution of world-wide significance. The programme, moreover, was augmented by the inclusion of Association football (which appeared in 1900 but only in a demonstration match), diving, field hockey, and ice hockey, as well as other sports since discontinued. The most dramatic episode of these Games was in the marathon, run from Windsor to Shepherd's Bush in London, the site of a new stadium. Pietri (Italy) led into the arena but collapsed and was disqualified for accepting assistance from officials. The gold medal went to the second man home, Hayes (USA), but Queen Alexandra, who was present opposite the finishing line, was so moved by the Italian's plight that she awarded him special gold cup. The 400 metres provided an opportunity for Halswelle (GB) to become the only man in Olympic history to win by a walk-over. The final was declared void after an American had been disqualified for boring. Two other Americans withdrew from re-run final in protest, leaving Halswelle an unopposed passage. Britain won the polo, and all the boxing, lawn tennis, rackets, rowing, and yachting titles as well as five out of six cycle races.

Olympic Games

The world's greatest international sports games are known as the Olympic Games. The Olympic Games have a very long history. They began in 777 BC in Greece and took place every four years for nearly twelve centuries at Olympia. They included many different kinds of sports: running, boxing, wrestling, long jumping, throwing of disks, chariot races, etc. All the cities in Greece sent their best athletes to Olympia to compete in the Games. All athletes took an oath that they had been preparing for the Games well, and promised to compete honestly and keep the rules of the sacred Olympics. The rules were very strict. Those that didn't obey them were physically punished. The athletes took part in all kinds of competitions. Winners were called "olympionics", they were awarded olive wreaths and cups of olive oil. This tradition has survived. For the period of the Games all the wars stopped. So the Olympic Games become the symbol of peace and friendship. In 394 AD the Games were abolished and were not renewed until many centuries later. In 1894, a Frenchman, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, addressed all the sports governing bodies and pointed out the significance of sports and its educational value. Two years later the first modern Olympic Games took place. Of course, the competitions were held in Greece to symbolize the continuation of the centuries-old tradition. In 1896 the International Olympic Committee was set up. It is the central policymaking body of the Olympic movement. It is formed by the representatives of all countries which take part in the Olympic Games. The International Olympic Committee decides upon the programme of the games, the number of the participants and the city-host for the Games. Over one hundred and fifty countries are represented in the International Olympic Committee now. Besides, each country has its National Olympic Committee. Summer and Winter Games are held separately. There are always several cities wishing to host the Games. The most suitable is selected by the International Committee. After that the city of the Games starts preparations for the competitions, constructs new sports facilities, stadiums, hotels, press centres. Thousands of athletes, journalists and guests come to the Games, and it takes great efforts to arrange everything. There is always an interesting cultural programme of concerts, exhibitions, festivals, etc., for each Games. Russia joined the Olympic movement in 1952. Since then it has won a lot of gold, silver and bronze medals. In 1980 Moscow hosted the Twenty-Second Olympic Games. And the symbol was brown bear. The latest Olympic Games were held in Salt Lake City. This is the largest winter Olympic Games people have ever had. Russian sportsmen got medals for their records in many sports events.

Sports and Olympic Games

A lot of people all over the world are interested in sport. Sport helps people to stay in good shape, keeps them fit, healthy and makes them more organized and better disciplined in there daily activities. We have always paid great attention to sport in our schools, colleges and universities. You can hardly find a school without a gym or a sport ground. Every city and town has a few stadiums or swimming pools where local competitions are usually held. It's been a tradition in Russia to divide sport into professional and amateur. There are different sporting societies and clubs in Russia. Many of them take part in different tournaments and are known all over the world. A great number of world records have been set by Russian sportsmen: gymnasts, weightlifters, tennis players, swimmers, figure skaters, runners, high jumpers. Our sportsmen also participate in the Olympic games and always win a lot of gold, silver and bronze medals. The Olympic Games have a very long history. They began in 777 BC in Greece and took place every four years for nearly twelve centuries at Olimpia. They included many different kinds of sports: running, boxing, wrestling, etc. All the cities in Greece sent their best athletes to Olimpia to compete in the Games. For the period of the Games all the wars stopped. So the Olympic Games became the symbol of peace and friendship. In 394 AD the Games were abolished and were not renewed until many centuries later. In 1894, a Frenchman, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, addressed all the sports governing bodies and pointed out the significance of sports and its educational value. Two years later the first modern Olympic Games took place. Of course, the competitions were held in Greece to symbolize the continuation of the centuries-old tradition. In 1896 the International Olympic Committee was set up. It is the central policymaking body of the Olympic movement. It is formed by the representatives of all countries which take part in the Olympic Games. The International Olympic Committee decides upon the programme of the games, the number of the participants and the city-host for the Games. Over one hundred and fifty countries are represented in the International Olympic Committee now. Besides, each country has its National Olympic Committee. Summer and Winter Games are held separately. There are always several cities wishing to host the Games. The most suitable is selected by the International Committee. After that the city of the Games starts preparations for the competitions, constructs new sports facilities, stadiums, hotels, press centers. Thousands of athletes, journalists and guests come to the Games, and it takes great efforts to arrange everything. There is always an interesting cultural programme of concerts, exhibitions, festivals, etc., for each Games. Russia joined the Olympic movement in 1952. Since then it has won a lot of gold, silver, and bronze medals. In 1980 Moscow hosted the Twenty-Second Olympic Games. The latest Olympic Games were held in Barcelona. Russia sportsmen got medals for their records in many sports events.

Olympic Games

The Olympic Games are one of the most spectacular reminders of the debt we owe to the Greeks. The original Olympic Games were held every four years in honour of Zeus, the supreme god of Greek religion. The first record of the games dates from 776 B.C., but it is certain that they existed prior to that. They were held continuously for over 1.000 years until they were abolished in the reign of King Theodosius about 392 A.D. The Olympic festival was a great unifying bond between the Independent city-states of Greece. The important sports in the original Olympic Games were running, jumping, wrestling, throwing the discus and throwing the javelin. Only men competed and they wore no clothes in order to have greater freedom of movement. Each competitor had to take the Olympic Oath - a promise to behave in a sportsman-like fashion. The modern Olympic era began in 1894 when Frenchman Baron Pierre de Coubertin decided to revive the ancient Greek tradition of celebrating health, youth and peace with a sports festival. Baron de Coubertin created the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the first modem Olympiad took place in Athens in 1896. Since then the Olympic Games have been held every four years with only two exceptions because of the two world wars. Even though the modern Olympic Games embrace the whole world, the connection with Greece is still very strong. A lighted torch is brought all the way from Greece, carried by a relay of runners, in order to light the Olympic Flame which bums all through the Games. As in ancient Greek times, the competitors still take the Olympic Oath. The long-distance race is still called the Marathon. Marathon was a village about 26 miles from Athens. In the year 490 BC the Greeks defeated a powerful Persian army at that spot. After the fierce day's fighting a soldier volunteered to bring news of the victory to the anxious citizens of Athens. He ran all the way and after gasping out the message. "Rejoice, we conquer!" he collapsed and died. One important rule of the Olympic Games is that the competitors must be amateurs. This rule has been under a lot of pressure in recent years because modem sport is so professional and competitive. Athletes train for years to take part in the Olympics and some countries spend much more than others on equipment and facilities. But despite these pressures, the amateur rule remains. In modern times the Olympic movement has become an enormous and expensive organisation, It's controlled by the International Olympic Committee, which consists of members from all the participating countries. The IOC is based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It chooses the locations of both summer and winter games (both take place once very four years, with winter games half a year before summer Olympiads). It also controls the rules of the competitions and selects new Olympic sports. The famous flag of the IOC shows five rings of different colours linked together. The rings represent the five continents.

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• The oldest Olympic medalist was Oscar Swahn of Sweden. In 1908 and 1912 he won three gold and two bronze medals, respectively, in shooting competitions. In the 1920 Games in Antwerp, he received a silver medal at age 72.

• The ancient Greek philosopher Plato became a two-time Olympic champion in the most severe form of competition - pankration.

• Since 1924, the Winter Games have been held separately from the Summer Games, with the exception of 1992, when they were both held in the same year.

• The tradition of the Olympic Games was revived by Baron Pierre de Coubertin (1863-1937) of France. In 1894, he proposed the Olympic motto “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (“Faster, higher, stronger”), a creation of his friend, Dominican priest Henri Dido. However, this motto only received official status in 1924.

• Spectators at the events could normally only be free, law-abiding Greek males. The threat of death forbade women to attend the competitions. The only exception was given to the priestesses of the goddess Demeter, for whom a marble throne was built as a place of honour at the stadium.

• The modern marathon distance of 42,195 km was established at the 1908 Olympic Games in London. At the request of the British royal family, arrangements for the marathon were changed several times in order for it to start from the Royal Palace.

• The Italian marathon runner Dorando Pietri was the first to cross the finish line on that occasion. At the very end of the race, exhausted from the sweltering heat, he was forced to seek medical help. After much debate, the panel of judges disqualified him for taking outside assistance and American Johnny Hayes was declared Olympic champion. However, at the suggestion of celebrated novelist Arthur Conan Doyle, Queen Alexandra awarded Pietri an honorary gold-plated cup.

• A year before the Melbourne Olympic Games in 1956, it was found that it would be impossible to hold equestrian sport competitions in Australia because the country had a ban on animal imports. As a result, equestrian events were held in Sweden. This is the only instance where the Olympic Games have been held in two different countries.

• The first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896. A Greek athlete who took third place in the marathon was deprived of his award after it turned out that he had ridden in a cart for part of the way.

• The word "Olympics" originally meant not the Games themselves, but the four-year gap between them. The ancient Greeks measured time by each Olympiad starting from 776 B.C. (e.g. "the third year of the 146th Olympiad"). In honour of the Olympic Games, a month-long vow of peace would be proclaimed throughout Greece.

• In the 2004 Athens group synchronized swimming final, the music was switched off twice during the Russian team’s performance. Despite this, the duo of Anastasia Davydova and Anastasia Ermakova still won the gold medal.

• Winners of the ancient Olympic Games known as the “Olympians” were bestowed with olive wreaths and starting from the 6th century B.C., a three-time champion of the Games could put his statue in the sacred grove of Altis.

• At the III Olympiad in 1904 in St. Louis, after having run about 14 km, American marathon runner Fred Lorts got into a car that was waiting for him. Two km from the finish, he re-entered onto the track and finished first. His cheating was discovered only after he received a gold medal.

• Soviet athletes first performed at the 1952 Olympic Summer Games in Helsinki. They won 38 gold, 53 silver and 15 bronze medals.

• The ancient Olympic Games consisted of only a few types of sports: running, boxing, wrestling, pankration (a blend of boxing and wrestling), pentathlon (running, discus, javelin, long jump, wrestling); and chariot races, including synoris (two horses in harness) and tethrippon (four horses in harness). The ancient athletes competed in the nude in all competitions, with the exception of for chariot races.

• In the summer of 1913, Emperor Nicholas II appointed Vladimir Voeikov, Commander of Hussar Regiment, Major-General of the Suite, to oversee the physical development of the population of the Russian Empire. This took place after failed performances by Russian athletes at the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm. To develop athleticism amongst the population, the Emperor created Russia's first Olympic Games in the spring of 1913. That same year, the Olympic Games were announced in Kiev. About half of the participants were officers. At the games, only 10 records in light athletics were set in Russia.

• The Olympic Winter Games were first held in 1924 in France. At that time, under the patronage of the IOC, an "International Sports Week on the Occasion of the VIII Olympic Games” was held in the town of Chamonix, which was supposed to host that year’s Olympic Summer Games. The winter sports competitions created so much interest that it was then decided to hold a Winter Games as well. However, this status was only assigned to them later.

• The competitions were held in the town of Olympia in the north-west region of the Peloponnese. The Games began on the day of the first full moon after the summer solstice, and lasted for five days.

• In Sydney in 2000, Eric Moussambani, a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea almost drowned in the 50-meter pool, having learned how to swim only nine months before the Games. Moussambani, however won his qualifying heat in the 100m freestyle because the other two participants were disqualified for a false start.

• The Olympic flame was first lit at the 1928 Games in Amsterdam, and the tradition of the Olympic torch relay was born in Berlin in 1936.

• The Olympic Games originated in Ancient Greece. According to tradition, the date of the first competitions considered to be the prototype of the Olympic Games was 776 B.C.

• During the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, Japanese marathon runner Sitso Kanaguri suffered an unbearable thirst at 30 km. He ran to the nearest house and asked the owner for some water. The Swedish farmer invited the runner into a room, but when he returned, he found his guest sound asleep. Kanaguri slept for more than a day. In 1967, the 76-year-old runner was given the opportunity to run the remaining distance - his total time was 54 years 8 months 6 days 8 hours 32 minutes and 20.3 seconds.

• At the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, during the first football match between Uruguay and Yugoslavia, the organizers mistakenly hung the national flag of Uruguay upside down, and instead of the country’s anthem, the musicians performed a dance tune. However, this did not prevent Uruguay from victory and from becoming Olympic champions.

• The organizers of the 1896 Games staged heats in Piraeus, the marine harbour of Athens. One participant from America, Gardner Williams, got out of the water immediately after the start. He refused to swim because of the coldness of the water.

• On March 16, 1911 in St. Petersburg, representatives of 34 sports associations of Moscow and St. Petersburg established the Russian Olympic Committee. It was headquartered in a former mansion on Sadovaya, which was home to the Imperial Russia Humane Society. Earlier, General Alexei Butovskii made attempts to establish a national Olympic committee. In 1892, during a trip to France, he met a young scholar and sports enthusiast, Baron Pierre de Coubertin. The Baron offered the General an opportunity to become an IOC Member from Russia and received a written agreement two years later.

• The famous Olympic slogan, "The most important thing is not to win but to take part” is credited to an American, Bishop Albert Talbot of Pennsylvania. He uttered these words during the IV Games while preaching in London’s St. Paul’s Cathedral on July 19, 1908.

• Members of royal families also participated in the ancient Olympic Games. One of the champions was an Armenian prince, Varazdat, who won the boxing competition.

• During the field hockey tournament at the 1908 Olympic Games in London, Great Britain was simultaneously represented by four teams, who shared all the medals amongst each other. "Gold" went to England, "silver" went to Ireland and "bronze" to Scotland and Wales.

• At the Olympic Games in Paris in 1900, the first three places in the marathon were taken by the French, even though the American athletes were considered to be the favourites. At the finish, one of the Americans noticed that unlike the rest of the runners, the winners were not dirty at all even though there were large puddles along the way. The French were duly accused of taking advantage of their knowledge of the Paris streets and cutting the route.

• Russia's athletes took part in the 1908 Olympic Games in London. Of the five athletes, three became Olympic medalists: Nikolai Panin-Kolomenkin won the gold in figure skating and Nikolai Orlov and Andrei Petrov both won the silver medal in Greco-Roman wrestling, in the light and heavyweight divisions, respectively.

• The head of the IOC medical commission, Prince Alexandre de Merode called the 1980 Games in Moscow the "most honest". At that time, 9,292 doping tests were administered and none of them showed a positive result.

• Alpine skiing for people with disabilities began to develop after World War II, when wounded soldiers returning from the front wanted to be able to continue their favorite sport. Slalom and giant slalom competitions were included in the first Paralympic Winter Games in 1976. Downhill competitions were held for the first time at the Paralympic Games in Innsbruck in 1984 and super giant was added in 1994 in Lillehammer.

• The Paralympic Games are the second largest sports competition after the Olympic Games. With each edition, the number of those wishing to compete in the Games gets larger and larger. For example, in 1960 400 athletes from 23 countries participated in the Games. For the 2012 Paralympic Games in London, however, these figures have substantially increased to 4200 athletes from 160 countries. Over the years, the number of Paralympic sport disciplines has grown from 57 to 471.

• The 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing became the most representative in the history of the Paralympic Movement: Almost 4,000 athletes from 146 countries competed in these Games.

• The first Paralympic Winter Games took place in 1976 in Sweden. Track and field competitions were organized for athletes with limb amputations and visual impairments. Additionally, the first showing of ice-sled racing took place during these Games.

• There are six official disability groups that make up the Paralympic Movement: athletes with amputations, cerebral palsy, intellectual disabilities, visual impairments and spinal cord injuries, as well as a group including other types of disabilities not covered in the previous five groups.

• The idea behind the Paralympic Games is credited to German neurologist Ludwig Guttmann. In 1948, Guttmann organized a sports competition for World War II veterans at the Center for rehabilitation of patients with spinal cord injuries Stoke-Mandeville Hospital in the UK. By 1953, the number of competitors in the Stoke-Mandeville Games had grown to 130, which attracted the attention of representatives from the Olympic Movement.

• There is no age limit for Paralympic Games participants. For example, American cyclist Barbara Buken won gold at the Games in Beijing at age 52. Previously, she was a professional athlete and member of the US national team. After an accident on the track, Buken suffered serious injuries and underwent a total of five brain operations. Despite this, the cyclist found the inner strength to return to major sports and compete in the Paralympic Games.

• The first Paralympic Games were held in 1960 in Rome. At that time, Italy had the largest delegation of athletes. The Games program in Rome consisted of eight sports, including light athletics, swimming, fencing, basketball, archery and table tennis. Participants in these events were athletes with spinal cord injuries.

• Adaptive snowboarding, created by the Canadian Snowboard Federation, is a sport discipline in which the equipment, rules and technical standards are adapted for people with disabilities. The inclusion of adaptive snowboarding in the Paralympic Winter Games program is currently under consideration.

• In the late 1970s, the monoski was invented for Paralympic skiers, which enabled athletes with locomotor apparatus injuries to take part in alpine skiing. Prior to this invention, only the visually impaired Paralympic athletes could take part in skiing. Monoski competitions among athletes with locomotor apparatus injuries first entered the program during the Nagano Paralympic Games in 1998.

• The official title of “Paralympic Games” was adopted during the II Paralympiad in 1964 in Tokyo, which included the participation of 390 athletes from 22 countries. Additionally, more sports disciplines were included in the program, particularly wheelchair, weightlifting and discus. These competitions also witnessed the first-ever use of Paralympic attributes: the flag, anthem and symbol of the Games.

• A few athletes with disabilities enter Olympic competitions. They include 28 year-old South African swimmer Natalie Du Toit, who lost her leg in a car crash and Polish tennis player Natalia Partyka, who has a congenital defect of the right hand. Both participated at the Beijing Olympics. Subsequently, they went on to compete at the Paralympic Games, where each won a gold medal.

• There are people among the Paralympic athletes, who were already heavily involved in sport prior to becoming disabled. One such person is Oleg Kretsul, a professional judoka. In the midst of preparing for the Games in Atlanta, he lost his vision in a car accident. Two years later, Kretsul returned to the tatami mat and competed among athletes with visual impairments. He became world champion, champion of Europe, and a medalist at the Paralympic Games in Athens. At the Paralympic Games in Beijing, Oleg Kretsul won the first gold medal in the history of Russian Paralympic judo.