Ludwig Guttman: An unsung hero in creating Paralympics through treatment and encouraging the disabled from war-affected zones

In the 1940s, those who suffered spinal injuries were prescribed to lie still and eventually developed infected bedsores and finally were left to die. However, Guttman believed the only way to rejuvenate one's body is through movement and physiotherapy.

He is Ludwig Guttman, an exceptional and unforgettable name in the world of sports, especially the Paralympics. He was a German neurologist, who fled from Nazi Germany and was finally tasked with the patients on their deathbed. He chose the sport to bring them back into normal life which finally helped some of those severe patients to settle their career in the professional field of Paralympics and inscribe the name of Guttman in the history of Paralympics. 

Having fled from Nazi-led Germany Guttman placed himself in a village of Northwest London. There, he was assigned to the National Spinal Injury Centre. His job especially was to treat the airmen who were affected by spinal injuries or were paralysed in the Second World War at the Stoke Mandeville village hospital,

In the year of 1940s, those who suffered spinal injuries were prescribed to lie still and conventionally developed infected bedsores and finally were left to die. However, Guttman took this as a challenge. He believed the only way to rejuvenate one's body is through movement and physiotherapy. 

This certainly showcased a glimmer of hope for the patients. Guttman encouraged the patients to move, lift weights, and rebuild their body strength and discovered a revolutionary treatment for paraplegics in the UK. 

Sports acted as therapy and gradually Guttman organized Stoke Mandeville Games, a sporting event on the very same day the Olympic Games opened in London on July 28, 1948. Sixteen participants in their wheelchairs faced off in the archery contest from Stoke Mandeville and Star and Garter Home. In this contest, 

Star and Garter Home won and were presented with the winners' trophy. Guttman expanded this game, gradually to different nations helping them to take part in the Games. In 1956, 18 nations participated in this game. 

In 1960, Rome drew the first stroke for the Paralympic Games when a competition for only spinal cord injury was held.  The term “Paralympics Games” was officially recognized by the IOC in 1984. 

Guttman died in 1980 in his 80s leaving a golden lineage of patients becoming professional players. He demonstrated that an accident should not be the ending but rather a great beginning.

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