Closing Ceremonies of 2004 Paralympics Feature Award Honoring Hwang Youn-dae

“To You Who Showed Hope and Courage!”-

On the morning of September 29 (Korean time), the 2004 Athens Paralympics, in which 4,000 athletes from 120 countries participated, ended 12 days of sporting events. Prior to the closing ceremonies, athletes who were recognized as giving the greatest hope during the games were awarded the “Hwang Youn-dae Overcome Prize.” The prize was founded in 1988 to pay tribute to Hwang Youn-dae, a handicapped woman suffered from poliomyelitis and vice president of the Korea Welfare Promotion Association for the Disabled who spent 30 years for disabled people’s welfare. (From the left, Vice President Hwang, Rainer Schmidt [Germany’s table tennis athlete], Zanele Situ [South Africa’s javelin gold medalist], and Phil Craven, head of the International Paralympic Committee.)