Patriarch Alexy meets with Paraolympionics

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia met on February 21, 2006, with a sports delegation leaving for Turin for the Paraolympic Games. The delegation is led by Vladimir Lukin, president of the Paraolympic Committee in Russia and Russian Federation Commissioner for Human Rights.

The Paraolympic Games has a rich history. In July 1948, Dr. L. Guttmann organized an archery competition at Stoke Mandeville, Great Britain, in which 16 paralyzed former military men and women participated. In subsequent years, international sports festivals began to be held for the disabled. In 1960, these games were held immediately after the Olympic Games in Rome. In 1964, the games for the disabled were held in Tokyo and were named Paraolympic Games. The Latin prefix para means ‘alongside, that is, these games are held alongside Olympic Games.

V. Lukin thanked the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church on behalf of the paraolympionics. He noted that the combined team wanted very much to meet with His Holiness the Patriarch and receive his blessing before the competition.

‘I am delighted to meet with our sportsmen before their very important mission to the Paraolympic Games’, His Holiness said, adding, ‘Watching your performance, we cannot help wondering and admiring your courage. Since 1990 our sportsmen began participating in the Paraolimpiads held two weeks after Olympic Games. Today your team has been officially seen off to Turin. I am delighted to wish you from the whole Russian Orthodox Church all the best and blessed successes. In spite of physical difficulties you produce outstanding sports results and bring back to our country gold, silver and bronze medals. And the Russian national anthem played at the Paraolympic Games will attest to the fact that our team includes outstanding masters who showed and continue to show excellent results’.

Patriarch Alexy reminded the sportsmen that the Russian Olympic team, before leaving for Turin, visited the Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan on Red Square and received a blessing for success in fulfilling their tasks. His Holiness said that foreigners were greatly impressed by the fact that Russian figure skater Yevgeny Pliuschenko made the sign of the cross after his victory in the Olympiad.

His Holiness told the sportsmen about St. Daniel’s Monastery in which the meeting was held. ‘It is my conviction that the blessing of the founder of this monastery, the Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow, and the Great Martyr George the Conqueror, the patron saint of Moscow, will accompany you’, he said.

After the meeting the paraolympionic had a picture taken together with the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.