Quick links

Supporting Brazilian Athletes Achieve Their Dreams at the 2024 Paralympics

Fresenius Kabi Brazil is one of the proud sponsors of the Athlon Institute which trains Paralympians and with 20 athletes sets to compete in Paris

August 28, 2024

As part of our commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all individuals Fresenius Kabi Brazil is one of the proud sponsors of the Athlon Institute of São José dos Campos in Brazil promoting inclusion and well-being through this partnership. At the upcoming Paralympics in Paris, from August 28 to September 8, 20 athletes from the Institute will compete in nine disciplines. 

Founded in 2011, the Athlon Institute is a non-profit organization dedicated to sports development for people with physical, intellectual, and visual impairment. Athletes who train at the Athlon Institute have combined to win more than 1,600 medals in the last 10 years! Fresenius Kabi Brazil has supported the Paralympic sports project since 2020. 

“Diversity, inclusion, and well-being are key values that run through everything we do, and it is exciting to see the Athlon Institute growing and gaining more attention for its excellent work,” said Gustavo Pagani, Managing Director of Fresenius Kabi Brazil. “We are very honored to support the Institute and provide the resources that enable athletes to achieve their sporting dreams at the world’s most prestigious event for disabled athletes. It shows how sport can transform lives and help create a more inclusive world.”

In Paris, athletes from the Institute will take part in athletics, boccia, cycling, powerlifting, judo, rowing, archery, shooting, and triathlon. The total of 20 athletes competing marks the highest participation in the Institute’s history. Since the Beijing Games in 2008, Brazil has always finished in the top 10 in the medals table.

The Athlon Institute aims to provide better conditions and infrastructure for Paralympic sports training. It offers scholarships and covers all logistics and food costs, which is why sponsors, such as Fresenius Kabi Brazil, are so significant. The Institute offers physical activities for people with disabilities, ranging from social care to high performance, covering an age range from 8 to 61 years.

In November last year, the Barueri office of Fresenius Kabi Brazil welcomed Institute athletes Rogério Lima (canoeing) and Ricardo Pedroso (blind goal ball) with his guide dog Logan for a talk on “Paralympic Athlete: An Achievement for Every Challenge.” Rogério Lima was honored to be carrying the Olympic torch at the Paralympics in Rio 2016.  

We wish all the athletes of the institute, whether stepping onto the Paralympic stage or supporting teammates in their journey, every success.

Barueri office of Fresenius Kabi Brazil welcomed Institute athletes

The Athlon Institute

Since the institute was founded in June 2011, there are now more than 260 people involved in the Institute. This includes 243 athletes with physical, intellectual, and visual disabilities, as well as autism spectrum disorder, spread across ten para-sports disciplines and seven Olympic disciplines. The Institute continues to grow, with the Instituto Fortalecendo Pessoas (Institute for Empowering People) set up this year, plus new sports centers established in the cities of Sorocaba and Rio de Janeiro.

Paralympics

The Paralympic Games emerged in the 1940s in the UK, when sports competitions were organized for war veterans with spinal cord injuries. On the opening day of the 1948 Olympic Games in London, the first competition for wheelchair athletes involved 16 injured servicemen and women, who took part in archery. The first official Paralympic Games were held in Rome in 1960, coinciding with that year’s Summer Olympics. The Paralympics in Paris will bring together more than 4,400 athletes from around the world.