Paralympics 2024: Tackling disability sport language bias using social media

When canoeist Curtis McGrath posted a message on social media last month saying that he would not be participating at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, it initially shocked the Australian public.

The 36-year-old had won three gold medals at the Games and was expected to defend his two titles from Tokyo.

But a quick swipe left on his post on Instagram revealed another picture – one saying that McGrath would be “competing” in the French capital, as opposed to “participating”.

The post was all about changing the language bias used to describe disability sports and Para-athletes in comparison to their Olympics peers.

“We’re trying to educate people about the right way we want to be portrayed, perceived and talked about,” McGrath told the BBC World Service.

“I think in the past we’ve always seen the Paralympics as this little event on the end of the Olympics for the disabled people to come along.

“We are elite athletes and we come here to compete and represent our countries to the highest level within our standard within our sport.”

McGrath’s message was part of a campaign by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), and the organisation’s chief brand and communications officer Craig Spence said the Paris Games were the time to “set the record straight” on how society should talk about Para-athletes.

“Language plays an instrumental role in how people are perceived, especially when it comes to persons with disabilities and Paralympians,” Spence added.

McGrath defended his kayak KL3 title in Paris but an illustration of the IPC’s campaign came when he missed out on a bronze medal in the Va’a VL3 category by six hundredths of a second.

“It’s a world-class competition out there,” McGrath said.