Dr. Christiana Schallhorn
Junior Professor at the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz (Germany). In her research and teaching, she focuses on the relationships between sport, media and society, with a particular interest in the impact of media sport on the population.
Email: Christiana.schallhorn@uni-mainz.de
After the impressive opening ceremony of the Olympic Games set new standards, and organizers promised that the Paralympic Games would also be opened in a spectacular way, this was an excellent teaser to arouse the curiosity and interest of the public to watch the show. Paris delivered. This 2024 opening ceremony was more eye-catching than ceremonies at any other Paralympic Games before it focused on the theme of inclusion as a guiding principle. This start gave hope that there would also be a great deal of interest in the then upcoming competitions.
However, although the broadcasters in Germany were clearly motivated to generate interest in the Paralympic Games and broadcast daily live coverage, summaries, highlights and interviews, the attention given to the broadcast of the Paralympics was limited by at least two key aspects. Firstly, while the TV broadcasts of the Olympic Games competitions were mainly shown in prime time from 8pm, the Paralympic competitions were mostly shown in the late morning to early afternoon. In other words, at a time when the majority of the population was at school or at work and could not tune in. The summaries of the highlights, on the other hand, were often broadcast very late in the evening—too late for many working people. These broadcast times had a decisive influence on whether sports fans have the opportunity to watch the competitions live at all. Even if there had been re-live offers etc., live is live. If viewing figures and ratings will be published in a few days, it must be assumed that the statistics will be skewed to some extent in favor of the Olympic Games and to the detriment of the Paralympic Games simply because of the broadcast times.
A second key point to consider in Germany is other competing sporting events taking place at the same time or not. It is no secret that Germany is a soccer-crazy country. The Olympic Games took place during a period in which there were almost no soccer matches because the season and all tournaments were over. In other words, the Olympic Games were not only one of the most important mega sporting events of the year, but at that time they were virtually the only sporting event in the media with hardly any competition from other sports shown in the media. Therefore, there was hardly any competition for broadcasting slots and consequently the sole attention of the media and the public. When the European Women’s Football Championship was held in 2022, the year before last, which also had hardly any parallel sporting events, record ratings were achieved. Although the German women’s national soccer team was very successful (vice-European champion), this enormous viewer interest was probably also due to a lack of sporting competition from other competitions. From this perspective, the 2024 Paralympic Games once again had a more difficult standing in Germany, as the professional soccer leagues started the new season at the same time. It is difficult to estimate how big the effect was in the end, but it can be assumed that the competition from professional soccer not only had a negative impact on the number of broadcast slots and times and therefore also on visibility of the Paralympics in the German media, but also on the interest for the Paralympics of many viewers.
It is important to be aware and to emphasize that although it is possible to draw conclusions about interest in the Olympic and Paralympic Games from the viewing figures, these factors must be taken into account critically. We must consider how we will classify this inequality in the media conditions of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. It is clear that inclusion – whether in the media, in sport or in society – becomes more challenging when athletes with different backgrounds compete under different conditions.
Even if the Paralympic Games were once again overshadowed by the Olympic Games in the media, Paris did its best to respectfully offer Olympic and Paralympic athletes a large international stage. Athletes have done more than serve as role models through their sporting efforts. They have shown the world that it is possible to perform at one’s best despite disabilities. They have also demonstrated that one can fight for one’s destiny despite setbacks, be a hero for others, and make one’s contribution to a more inclusive society.
Sport is often considered a mirror of society. The opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games conveyed profound messages, e.g., in joint dances by people with and without disabilities. However, the fact that the Paralympic Games have been taking place separately from the Olympic Games raises questions about the signals being set. There are, of course, many reasons that the events take place one after the other, including economic, organizational and other factors. However, similar arguments against realization of inclusion are also found in everyday life. As long as these cannot be refuted and resolved, staged performances for the inclusion of people with and without disabilities will remain part of the show and look nice in the media, but often fail in reality.
