President Dmitry Medvedev praised the Paralympic Games as one of the best ideas of the twentieth century whilst he celebrated the success of the Russian Paralympic team at Beijing 2008 during a reception in the Kremlin.

The Russian team at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games included 145 athletes – an increase of 61 compared to Athens 2004. This increase reflects Russia’s commitment to the Paralympic Movement and to using Sochi 2014 to inspire the 14 million Russian people who have disabilities with sport.

President Medvedev - who plays a key role in Sochi 2014 preparations as head of the Presidential Council for Physical Culture, Sports and Preparation of the XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympic Winter Games – said that the Russian Paralympians had inspired thousands of disabled people across the country.

The Russian President congratulated the Russian Paralympic team’s success at Beijing 2008 which included setting 18 new world records, winning 18 gold, 23 silver and 22 bronze medals and finishing eighth in the medals table – ahead of their target of finishing in the top ten. The results were a dramatic improvement on the team’s performance at Athens 2004 where they finished eleventh.

Following the reception – hosted in the Kremlin's Andreyevsky Hall – President Medvedev joined the successful Paralympians in a photograph to mark the occasion.

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