When were the first Paralympic Games held?

The Paralympic movement began with neurologist Ludwig Guttmann at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in England, who used sport to help injured World War II veterans recover. He organised the first Stoke Mandeville Games for wheelchair athletes on 29 July 1948, the same day the London Olympics opened. In 1960 the event was held in Rome shortly after the Olympics, with about 400 athletes from 23 countries, and it is now recognised as the first Paralympic Games. The first Winter Paralympics took place in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden, in 1976. Since 1988 the Paralympics have been held in the same host city as the Olympics.