A magazine about the "World of Otto Bock".
The rapid development of the Paralympics in the past 20 years has been an exciting part of Otto Bock HealthCare’s history. I remember the beginnings in 1988 in Seoul well. Four technicians from Otto Bock Australia offered their help to the athletes in a small pavilion. That was our first cautious, start. In Barcelona in 1992 we transported a complete workshop container for the first time. Now, in Beijing, our team has already set a record before the games even started: 136 technicians from 31 countries support athletes from around the world. They provide this support in a central workshop in the athletes’ village, as well as in service stations at 13 competition sites.
Many of our technicians have already become Paralympics experts and look forward to the games almost as much as the athletes themselves. They work with passion and a lot of experience. We are thankful to the BOCOG organization committee for the trust they extended to us in China. Also in Beijing, the cooperation agreement between the International Paralympic Committee and Otto Bock was signed in 2005. We were therewith admitted as an official member in the circle of the paralympic family. This is simultaneously an honour and a duty.
What can we provide as a company? Technological expertise from our position as a world market leader in prosthetics and a leading provider of orthotics and high-tech wheelchairs. Multinational teams of experts made up of members from 40 countries around the world. But there is also the reliability of our company based on our nearly 90 year history. And last but not least, our personal enthusiasm for the sports performed by these admirable athletes. They are at the centre. They are the standard bearers for an endeavour that can positively change our understanding of the lives of those who live with physical disabilities. This goal unites us.
I look forward to fair and enthusiastic competition in Beijing and am firmly convinced that we will look back, from the final celebration, on a amazing nine days. This Paralympics magazine has been created to inform you about an international event which – as the second largest sports event in the world – has now stepped out of the shadow of the Olympic Games. Enjoy!
Prof. Hans Georg Näder
President and CEO, Otto Bock HealthCare
(im_646b40_dialog_para08_gb_web.pdf | 5390,43 kb)
| Table of contents | |
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• Editorial Prof. Hans Georg Näder • Sports faces • Greeting and biography • The most important competition sites • 20 years of workshop experience of Otto Bock • The rowers are coming! |
• Zhu Linyong: • Travel tips for China • More sports faces • Summer Paralympics • Competition schedule • Stela Eneva, Bulgaria: |
