On Friday, March 15, guest speaker Eli Wolff from Brown University spoke to a crowd of students and coaches about “the power of sport.” Wolff is the leader of the Sport and Development Project at Brown, where he received his undergraduate degree. He has competed on the Paralympic soccer team twice and while an "incredible" opportunity, he questions the degree to which these games are considered an anticipated event (such as the Olympics) rather than a charity.
Drawing on promotional videos for the Paralympics and other disability-specialized events, such as Roller Ball in Ghana, Wolff urged the audience to see disability through an artistic lens or as an “ingenious way to live.”
The bylaws of the Olympics say everyone has an equal right to compete without discrimination. However, as Wolff points out, he technically cannot wear the Olympic rings - they are reserved solely for the Olympians. Is that equal? To put it in greater perspective he asked why females who participate in the Olympics don’t have a competition of their own, the Femalympics? Why does this divide between the Olympics and Paralympics exist?
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