Long before there were Paralympians, athletes with a disability competed, usually in able-bodied events. In 1912, Australian amputee athlete James Resleure almost made the US Olympic team.

The Spinal Unit at Stoke Mandeville Hospital opened on 1 February 1944. It was the start of a new era.

The event that was the forerunner of the Paralympic Games featured sixteen archers in a single day of competition on 29 July, 1948.

The 1951 Stoke Mandeville Games was the first Games to include international athletes. One of them was Australian Charlene Todman.

For the second time in its short history, an Australian patient at Stoke Mandeville Hospital competed in the Stoke Mandeville Games.

The Paralympic movement in Australia began in 1954 at the Shenton Park Annexe, Royal Perth Hospital.

Mt Wilga Rehabilitation Centre was the first spinal unit on the east coast. It incorporated sport as a core element of rehabilitation.

The 1957 Stoke Mandeville Games was the first time an Australian disability sports team competed at an international games.

List of the members of the 1957 Australian team to the Stoke Mandeville Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

The Spinal Unit at the Royal North Shore Hospital was the second in Sydney and gave the patients at Mt Wilga a cross-town sports rival.

Athletics results at the summer Paralympics and IPC World Championships from 1960.

Results of Australian swimmers at the summer Paralympics and IPC World Championships from 1960.

Wheelchair basketball results from summer Paralympics and World Championships from 1960.

Table tennis results at the summer Paralympics from 1960.

Archery results at the summer Paralympics from 1960.

The 1960 National Paraplegic Games were the selection event for the 1960 Paralympics, to be held in Rome in September that year.

The Australian Paraplegic Council was established. Its roles included organising a National Paraplegic Games and selecting a team from those Games to attend the 1960 Paralympics.

Australia sent a team of twelve athletes and four support staff to the first Paralympic Games.

List of the members of the 1960 Australian Paralympic Team for the Rome Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1960 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

The 1962 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games were held in Perth, the then home of disability sport in Australia, with the Royal Perth Hospital being a key driving force.

List of the members of the 1962 Australian Commonwealth Paraplegic Team for the Perth Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1962 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Powerlifting at the summer Paralympics from 1964.

Fifteen Australian athletes and eight support staff travelled to Tokyo for the 1964 Summer Paralympics.

List of the members of the 1964 Australian Paralympic Team for the Tokyo Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1964 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

The 1966 National Paraplegic Games were held in Brisbane. They were the selection event for the 1966 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games.

The Australian team at the 1966 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games consisted of eleven athletes and five assistants (escorts).

List of the members of the 1966 Australian Team for the Kingston Commonwealth Paraplegic Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Australia sent nearly triple the number of competitors it sent to Tokyo, with a team of thirty-two athletes and eighteen support staff.

List of the members of the 1968 Australian Paralympic Team for the Tel Aviv Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1968 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australia and England fought it out again to be recognised as the premier nation at the Edinburgh Commonwealth Paraplegic Games in 1970.

List of the members of the 1970 Australian Commonwealth Paraplegic Team for the Edinburgh Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Responsibility for selecting and organising international sporting teams was delegated to the Australian Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Sports Sub Committee (APQSSC).

The 1972 Games saw the start of a move away from ‘all-rounders’ to athletes specialising in events. Australia finished eleventh on the medal table.

List of the members of the 1972 Australian Paralympic Team for the Heidelberg Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1972 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

In contrast to Perth, Kingston and Edinburgh, the 1974 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games in New Zealand were hosted by a different city than the able-bodied Games.

List of the members of the 1974 Australian Commonwealth Paraplegic Team for the Dunedin Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

A meeting at the Royal Adelaide Hospital led to the formation of the Australian Sports Council for the Disabled to facilitate the co-ordination of competitive sport for people with disabilities in Australia.

Australia won 148 medals at the first FESPIC Games, second to host nation Japan in the overall medal count.

List of the members of the 1975 Australian FESPIC Games Team

Shooting results from the summer Paralympics from 1976.

196 athletes from 16 countries competed in the first winter Paralympics in Örnsköldsvik. Australia’s only participant was Ron Finneran.

Forty-eight Australian athletes competed at the 1976 Paralympics, including amputee and vision impaired athletes for the first time.

List of the members of the 1976 Australian Paralympic Team for the Toronto Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Erin O’Neill, one of the Australian Team ‘hostesses’ for the 1976 Games, wrote about her experience with the Australian team.

Looking for more about the 1976 summer Paralympics in Toronto? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

For its first home multi-sport Games since 1962, the Australian Team was a mixture of experienced athletes and up and coming youngsters.

List of the members of the 1977 Australian FESPIC Games Team

Australia sent two competitors to Geilo – Kyrra Grunnsund and Peter Rickards.

List of the members of the 1980 Australian Paralympic Team for the Geilo Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1980 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Fifty-three Australian athletes competed at the Arnhem Paralympics.

List of the members of the 1980 Australian Paralympic Team for the Arnhem Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1980 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

The Australian team of 157 was the largest at the 1982 FESPIC Games in Hong Kong. Australia led the medal winners, with 169 gold, 91 silver and 55 bronze – a total of 315 medals.

List of the members of the 1982 Australian FESPIC Games Team

Australian team and results at the Men’s Gold Cup, 23-28 May 1983, Halifax, Canada.

Results of Australian cyclists at the summer Paralympics and UCI World Championships from 1984.

Three Australian athletes participated in these Games: Rodney Mill (Cross-Country Skiing), Kyrra Grunnsund (Alpine Skiing) and Andrew Temple (Alpine Skiing).

List of the members of the 1984 Australian Paralympic Team for the Innsbruck Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles

Looking for more about the 1984 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australia took a team of 58 athletes to the VII World Wheelchair Games, in Stoke Mandeville, and a team of 66 to the International Games for the Disabled, in New York.

List of the members of the 1984 Australian Paralympic Team for the New York Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1984 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the Men’s Gold Cup, 6-12 April 1986, Melbourne, Australia.

The Australian Team continued its record of FESPIC Games success in Surakarta, winning 176 medals in total, 104 gold, 44 silver medals and 28 bronze medals.

List of the members of the 1986 Australian FESPIC Games team with links to team members’ Wikipedia articles.

List of the members of the 1986 Australian FESPIC Games Team

Mr Graham Pryke was succeeded as President of the ACSD by Barbara Worley, who became the most influential person in disability sport in Australia.

Boccia results at the summer Paralympics from 1988.

Wheelchair tennis results at the summer Paralympics from 1988.

Australia took five competitors to the 1988 Innsbruck Winter Paralympics, all Alpine skiers.

List of the members of the 1988 Australian Paralympic Team for the Innsbruck Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1988 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

At a national level, the Seoul Paralympic Games were significant, as they represented a concerted effort to organise, fund and send a truly national Australian team.

List of the members of the 1988 Australian Paralympic Team for the Seoul Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1988 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

In 1989, Adrienne Smith assumed the presidency of the Australian Confederation of Sports for the Disabled.

Australia finished 3^rd in the gold medal count in Kobe and 2^nd in the total medal count behind a dominant performance by the host nation, Japan.

List of the members of the 1989 Australian FESPIC Games Team with links to Team members’ Wikipedia articles.

List of the members of the 1989 Australian FESPIC Games Team

Australian teams and results at the Men’s Gold Cup (5-10 August 1990, Bruges, Belgium) and Women’s Gold Cup (5-11 July 1990, St. Etienne, France).

Australian team and results at the World Championships for the Disabled, 15 – 23 July 1990, Assen, Netherlands.

Australia sent five athletes, all Alpine Skiers, to the 1992 Winter Paralympics and came home with its first ever medals.

List of the members of the 1992 Australian Paralympic Team for the Albertville Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1992 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

The Australian team comprised 134 athletes and 41 staff, including the first Paralympic appearance by the national women’s basketball team.

List of the members of the 1992 Australian Paralympic Team for the Barcelona Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1992 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australia placed at the top of the medal tally at the Madrid Paralympic Games for athletes with an intellectual disability.

List of the members of the 1992 Australian Paralympic Team for the Madrid Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1992 summer Paralympics in Madrid? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

The Lillehammer Winter Paralympic Games were held in 1994, six months after Sydney was awarded the 2000 Paralympics.

List of the members of the 1994 Australian Paralympic Team for the Lillehammer Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles

Looking for more about the 1994 winter Paralympics in Lillehammer? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the 1994 IPC World Championship Cycling for the Disabled, Hasselt, Belgium, 30 May – 5 June 1994.

Australian teams and results at  Men’s Gold Cup (21-30 July 1994, Edmonton, Canada) and Women’s Gold Cup (6-13 August 1994).

Australian team and results at the 1st IPC World Athletics Championships, Berlin, Germany,  22 – 31 July.

Australia sent a team of more than 100 athletes to the 1994 FESPIC Games in Beijing.

List of the members of the 1994 Australian Team for the Beijing FESPIC Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Australian team and results at the 1994 IPC Swimming World Championships, 1-9 November, Valetta, Malta.

Wheelchair rugby results from summer Paralympics and World Championships from 1995.

Australian team and results at the 1st Wheelchair Rugby World Championships, Nottwil, Switzerland, October 22-29, 1995

Australian team and results at the 1996 World Disabled Alpine Championships, Lech, Austria.

Equestrian results at the summer Paralympics from 1996.

Goalball results at the summer Paralympics from 1996.

In the lead-up to the 1996 Atlanta Summer Paralympic Games, the APF innovatively altered its approach to developing athlete performance.

List of the members of the 1996 Australian Paralympic Team for the Atlanta Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1996 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the 2nd Wheelchair Rugby World Championships, Toronto, Canada, 1998

Australia was represented by four male alpine skiers, only one of whom had previously competed in a Winter Paralympics and won fewer medals than in the two previous Winter Games.

List of the members of the 1998 Australian Paralympic Team for the Nagano Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 1998 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the 2nd IPC World Athletics Championships, Birmingham, England, 6-16 August 1998.

Australian team and results at the 1998 Track and Road World Championships, Colorado Springs, United States, 15 – 20 September.

Australian team and results at the 1998 IPC World Swimming Championships, Christchurch, New Zealand, 7-17 October 1998.

Australian teams and results at the Men’s  and Women’s Gold Cup, 23-31 October 1998, Sydney, Australia,

List of the members of the 1999 Australian FESPIC Games Team

Sailing results at the summer Paralympics from 2000 to 2016.

Australian team and results at the VI^th World Ski Championships for Disabled, 24 January –  2 February, Anzere, Switzerland.

Sydney was Australia’s most successful Games, improving on the Atlanta performance to top the medal tally for the first time in Paralympic history.

List of the members of the 2000 Australian Paralympic Team for the Sydney Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the  2000 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the 3rd Wheelchair Rugby World Championships, Gothenberg, Sweden, May 2002

List of the members of the 2002 Australian FESPIC Games Team

At the 2002 Winter Paralympics, Australia earned the highest-ever number of top-ten performances and the most gold medals in a Winter Games, with the team finishing fourth in Alpine skiing ahead of powerhouses France, Switzerland, Italy and Canada.

List of the members of the 2002 Australian Paralympic Team for the Salt Lake City Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 2002 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the 3rd IPC World Athletics Championships,Lille, France, 6-16 August 2002.

Australian teams and results at the 2002 Men’s and Women’s Gold Cup, 23 August – 1 September 2002, Kitakyushu, Japan.

Australian team and results at the 2002 World Championships, Seville, Spain, 15 – 22 September.

Australian team and results at the IPC Swimming World Championships, Mar de Plata, Argentina, 3-12 December 2002.

Australian teams and results at the 2002 IPC Track and Road World Championships, Altenstadt, Germany, 3 – 12 August.

Australian team and results at the 2003 World Championships, Milan, Italy, 25 August – 1 September.

Australian team and results at the IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships, 30 January – 6 February 2004, Wildschönau, Austria.

Australian team and results at the 2004 World Championships, Banyoles, Spain, 29 July – 1 August.

Australia collected 101 medals in total at the 2004 Athens Summer Paralympics, placing second overall and fifth on the gold-medal tally.

List of the members of the 2004 Australian Paralympic Team for the Athens Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the  2004 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the 2005 World Championships,  Gifu, Japan, 29 August – 4 September.

Australia was represented by 10 athletes at the 2006 Torino Winter Paralympics, the country’s largest-ever Winter Paralympic Games team.

List of the members of the 2006 Australian Paralympic Team for the Torino Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 2006 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian teams and results at the Men’s and Women’s Championships, July 6 – July 15, 2006,  Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Australian team and results at the 2006 World Championships, Eton, England, 20 – 27 August.

Australian team and results at the 4th IPC World Athletics Championships, Assen, Netherlands, 2-10 September 2006.

Australian team and results at the 2006 IPC Track Cycling World Championships, 9 – 18 September, Aigle, Switzerland.

Australian team and results at the 4th Wheelchair Rugby World Championships , Christchurch, New Zealand, 12-16 September 2006

List of the members of the 2006 Australian FESPIC Games Team

Australian team and results at the 2006 IPC Swimming World Championships, Durban, South Africa, 2-8 December 2006.

Australian teams and results at the 2007 Para World Track  and Road Championships, Bordeaux, France, 19-27 August.

Australian team and results at the 2007 World Championships, Munich, Germany, 26 August – 2 September.

Rowing results at the summer Paralympics and World Championships.

Australia’s team of 289 athletes and officials to the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games was the largest ever to an away Games.

List of the members of the 2008 Australian Paralympic Team for the Beijing Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 2008 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships,  19 February – 1 March, High 1 Resort, Korea.

Australian team and results at the 2009 World Championships, Poznan, Poland, 23 – 20 August.

Australian teams and results at the 2009 UCI Para Road Cycling World Championships, Bogogno, Italy, 10 – 13 September and Para Track Cycling World Championships, Manchester, England, 6-8 November.

List of the members of the 2010 Australian Paralympic Team for the Vancouver Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the  2010 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Eleven Australian athletes competed in Vancouver. The Australian team returned home with one silver and two bronze medals, finishing 13^th on the total medal tally.

Australian teams and results at the Men’s and Women’s Championships, Birmingham, England, 7-17 July 2010.

Australian team and results at the 2010 IPC Swimming World Championships, Eindhoven, Netherlands, 14-21 August 2010.

Australian team and results at the 2010 UCI Para Cycling Road World Championships, Baie-Comeau, Canada, 19-22 August.

Australian team and results at the 5th  Wheelchair Rugby World Championships, Vancouver, Canada, 21-26 September 2010.

Australian team and results at the 2010 World Championships, Lake Karapiro, New Zealand, 31 October – 7 November.

Australian team and results at the 2011 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships, 14 – 23 January, Sestriere, Italy.

Australian team and results at the 5th IPC World Athletics Championships, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-30 January 2011.

Australian teams and results for UCI Para Cycling Track World Championships, Montichiari, Italy, 11 – 13 March and Road World Championships, Roskilde, Denmark, 8 – 11 September.

Australian team and results at the 2011 World Championships, Bled, Slovenia, 28 August – 4 September.

Australian team and results at the UCI Para Track Cycling World Championships, Los Angeles, United States, 9 – 12 February.

List of the members of the 2012 Australian Paralympic Team for the London Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the  2012 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian team and results at the 2013 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships, 18 – 27 February, La Molina, Spain.

Australian team and results at the 6th IPC World Athletics Championships, Lyon, France, 19-28 July 2013.

Australian team and results at the 2013 World Championships, Chungju, South Korea,  25 August – 1 September.

Australian team and results at the 2013 IPC Swimming World Championships, Montreal, Canada, 12-18 August 2013.

Australian team and results at the 2013 UCI Para Road Cycling World Championships, Baie-Comeau, Canada, 29 August – 1 September.

List of the members of the 2014 Australian Paralympic Team for the Sochi Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 2014 winter Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

Australian teams and results for the UCI Para Track World Championships, Aguascalientes, Mexico, 10 – 13 April and UCI Para Road World Championships, Greenville, United States, 29 August – 1 September.

Australian teams and results at Men’s Championships, Incheon, South Korea, 5-14 July 2014 and Women’s Championships, Toronto, Canada, 20-28 June 2014.

Australian team and results at the 6th  Wheelchair Rugby World Championships, Odense, Denmark, 4-10 August 2014

Australian team and results at the 2014 World Championships, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 24 -31 August.

Australian team and results at the 2015 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships, 2 – 10 March, Panorama Mountain Village, British Columbia, Canada.

Australian teams and results at the 2015 UCI Para Track World Championships, Appledorn, Netherlands, 26 – 29 March and 2015 UCI Para Road World Championships, Nottwil, Switzerland, 29 July – 2 August.

Australian team and results at  the 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships, Glasgow, Scotland, 13-19 July 2015.

Australian team and results at the 2015 World Championships,  Aiguebelette, France, 30 August – 6 September.

Australian team and results at the 7th IPC World Athletics Championships, Doha, Qatar, 21-31 October 2015.

Triatjhlon results at the summer Paralympics from 2016.

Canoeing results at the summer Paralympics from 2016.

Australian team and results at the 2016 UCI Para Track World Championships, Montichiari, Italy, 17 – 20 March.

List of the members of the 2016 Australian Paralympic Team for the Rio Games, with links to the members’ Wikipedia articles.

Looking for more about the 2016 summer Paralympics? Here are some links you can visit and ideas to find out more.

2017 World Para Swimming Championships, Mexico City, Mexico, 2-7 December 2017.

Australian team and results at the 2017 World Para Skiing World Championships, 22 – 31 January 2017, Tarviso, Italy.

Australian teams and results for 2017 UCI Para Track World Championships, Los Angeles, United States, 2 – 5 March and UCI Para Road World Championships, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, 31 August – 3 September.

Australian results at the 8th World Para Athletics Championships, London, 14-23 July 2017.

Australian team and results at the 2017 World Championships,  Sarasota, United States, 24 September – 1 October 2017.

Australian teams and results for 2018 UCI Para Track World Championships, Rio de Janiero, Brazil, 22 – 25 March and UCI Para Road World Championships,Maniago, Italy, 2 – 5 August.

Australian results at the 7th  Wheelchair Rugby World Championships, Sydney, Australia, 5-10 August 2018.

Australian teams and results at Men’s  and Women’s World Championships, Hamburg, Germany, 16-26 August 2018.

Australian team and results at the 2018 World Championships, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 9-16 September.

As the year ends, many sporting organisations make awards to those who have made significant contributions or achieved at the highest levels in their sport. Listed below are Australian Paralympic athletes, coaches and administrators who have been formally recognised in 2018 for their achievements. For more information, click on their name for the link to their Wikipedia article (where available).

Australian team and results at the 2019 World Para Skiing World Championships, 21 – 24 January, Sella Nevea, Italy  and 28 – 31 January, Kranjska Gora, Slovenia.

Australian team and results at the 2019 World Rowing Championships, Ottensheim, Austria, 25 August to 1 September 2019.

Australian team and results at the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships, London, 9 – 15 September.

Australian team and results at the 2019 UCI Para Cycling Road World Championships, Emmen, Netherlands, 11 – 15 September.

Australian team and results at the 9th World Para Athletics Championships, Dubai  7-15 November 2019 and Marathon events held as part of the London Marathon, 28 March 2019.