The Olympics is an event that celebrates the endurance of the human spirit, and the Paralympics exemplifies that even more as disabled sportsmen and sportswomen defy odds to make history.
The 2016 Paralympics were brought to a close last night inside the Maracanã Stadium in a spectacular celebration featuring Brazilian dance and music, featuring the country’s biggest pop stars and of course, a plethora of fireworks.
Below is a list of memorable Paralympians this year, and a bit about their names:
Kadeena Cox
The 25-year-old won gold medals in TWO sports, despite having a stroke in 2014 which led to Multiple Sclerosis. She won the Gold in cycling and Gold, Silver and Bronze medals in athletics. She became the first British Paralympian to top the podium in two different sports since 1984.
Name Meaning: Kadeena is a Latin name meaning “with rhythm”, and is also a variant form of the name Cadence.
Daniel Dias
Every Paralympics games needs a home-grown star, and Daniel Dias, 28, certainly did his country proud! He has reached a career goal of 24 medals in his third ever Paralympics, and won four Gold medals in total this year.
Name Meaning: Daniel is a biblical name meaning “God is my Judge” . The name was borne by the prophet whose story is told in the Book of Daniel.
Sarah Storey
Sarah Storey, 38, made history by becoming the most successful British female Paralympian of all time, winning her 14th Gold medal at Rio this year. Her three-year-old daughter, Louisa was there to make the win even sweeter!
Name Meaning: Sarah is a biblical name meaning “princess”. The name was borne by the wife of Abraham and she was the mother of Isaac.
Lee Pearson
Another GB Paralympian that stood out at Rio was Lee Pearson, 42, who celebrated his 11th equestrian Paralympic Gold victory this summer. Pearson didn’t let his condition, arthrogryposis, stop him from not only winning medals, but also had the honour of being flat-bearer for Team GB.
Name Meaning: Lee is an English name, meaning “meadow” or “wood”.
Will Bayley
Despite undergoing 12 bone-breaking operations before the age of five because of his arthrogryposis and then overcoming cancer two years later, Will Bayley has won is first Gold medal in table tennis at Rio this year – and then got a yellow card for climbing onto the table in celebration!
Name Meaning: Will is a shortened form of William, which is a German name meaning “will” and “desire” but also “helmet” and “protection”.
