PARALÍMPIADAS NA MÍDIA: UM ESTUDO SOBRE A RIO 2016 NO PORTAL “LANCE”

The Paralympic Games are the premier adaptive sports competition, held every four years since 1960. In 2016, the event was hosted in Rio de Janeiro, marking the first time Brazil hosted the Games. This study analyzed 200 news articles published on the "Lance!" website during the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, focusing on the distribution of news by sport and type of disability. Track and Field and Swimming were the most highlighted sports, reflecting the number of medals and records achieved by Brazilian athletes. The study also noted that, in addition to the number of achievements, factors such as athlete popularity and historical tradition influenced media coverage. Sports such as Goalball and Five-a-Side Football, despite having fewer medals, also received extensive coverage due to their impact on the national sports scene. The analysis concludes that the visibility given to sports is closely linked to athletic performance, athlete prominence, and the competition calendar. The study suggests that future investigations should consider not only coverage by major portals but also the growing role of social media in disseminating information about the Paralympic Games. Received: 2024/06/08 Reformulated: 2024/08/29 Accepted: 2024/08/29