As we haven’t had a global sporting event happen in London for at least two weeks we wanted to dedicate this week’s Tech Munch to the Paralympic Games. The Games opened with the ceremony on Wednesday and the UK has already won ten medals in total, including two golds, so here in the office we’re already very excited. In this edition we wanted to bring you some of the statistics that we hope will make these Games the best yet.
Over these 11 days of sport we’ll see:
On Wednesday night the Games kicked off with a celebration of science and its power to change. This time the Queen didn’t abseil into the arena but there was a giant apple, representing Newton’s groundbreaking discovery! Stephen Hawking’s narration was also a clear reminder of the power of science; without it his brilliant mind would have remained locked away. Here are some tasty facts about how the spectacle was put together.
During the Paralympic Games we’ll be writing about some of the technology that helps these incredible athletes compete in sports ranging from the familiar running and cycling to wheelchair basketball and the ominously titled ‘murderball’ (or wheelchair rugby by another name). We came across this article in The Daily Telegraph during our morning review of the papers, which offers fascinating insight into the world of the 80 technicians tasked with keeping the Paralympics going. The powerful equipment harnessed by some of our athletes inevitably takes a bit of a battering (occupational hazard when playing ‘murderball’) and these technicians ensure that the equipment and technology is in full working order.
A few of us are off to the Olympic Park this weekend to watch the athletics and goalball – now our obsession with the Brownlee brothers has subsided, we can’t wait to see the Knott brothers in action (well, we have mentioned that the majority of the team is female).
For now, we leave you with some images of the Paralympic opening ceremony. Have a great sporting weekend!
