SPRING 2025
To What Extent Do Socioeconomic Factors Such as HDI, Continental Origin, and Previous Host Advantage Affect Paralympic Medal Winning?
AUTHORS
Ahmed Sherif Elagamawy, International Programs School ‘27
Valerie Caniedo Mangao, International Programs School ‘26
Muhammad Haider Shabaz, International Programs School ‘26
ABSTRACT
This research examines the extent to which socioeconomic factors – HDI (Human Development Index), continental origin, and previous host status – affect medal distribution. This study takes the most recent 2024 Paris Paralympics as the focus, with the tests being conducted on secondary data collected from the official Paralympics website. A multitude of statistical methods and analyses were utilised to test the data, such as the Theil Index, standard deviation, etc.
The research identifies significant disparities and deviations in the Paralympic medal dispersion. The findings of this study reveal that nations with higher HDI scores, primarily those in Europe and North America, win a significant large proportion of the medal count, while countries with lower HDI scores originating from other continents (Africa, South America, Asia) tend to struggle and face significant hurdles.
About the Wharton Sports Analytics Journal
ISSN 3070-4065 (Online)
The Journal is published by the Wharton Sports Analytics and Business Initiative and features original student research at the intersection of sports, business, and analytics. Explore the Journal.
