Why is "Paralympics" called so?

[Silver Boat]

Who can tell me why "Paralympics" is called so? "Paralympics" is the Olympics for the disabled people, but why is it called "Parallel Olympics"? Thanks so much.

 

[Anglika]

It is not the "Parallel Olympics" but the "Para-Olympics" - the Olympic Games for disabled athletes run alongside the Games for able-bodied athletes. The word "para" is the Greek word for "beside/alongside".