Absent at the inaugural Paralympic Games in 1960

1960 Summer Paralympics

The 1960 Summer Paralympics, originally known as the 9th Annual International Stoke Mandeville Games, were the first international Paralympic Games, following on from the Stoke Mandeville Games of 1948 and 1952. They were organised under the aegis of the International Stoke Mandeville Games...

 in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

made its Paralympic début by hosting the 1964 Games

1964 Summer Paralympics

The 1964 Summer Paralympics, originally known as the 13th International Stoke Mandeville Games, were the 2nd Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Tokyo, Japan, they were the last Summer Paralympics to take place in the same city as the Summer Olympics until the 1988 Summer Paralympics...

 in Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

. The country has participated in every subsequent edition of the Summer Paralympics, and in every edition of the Winter Paralympics since the first in 1976

1976 Winter Paralympics

The 1976 Winter Paralympic Games were the first Winter Paralympics. They were held in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden from 21 to 28 February 1976. The disabilities included in this paralympics were blindness and amputees. Sixteen countries took part with 198 athletes...

. It has hosted the Paralympic Games twice, with Tokyo hosting the 1964 Summer Games, and Nagano the 1998 Winter Paralympics

1998 Winter Paralympics

The 1998 Winter Paralympics, the seventh Winter Paralympics, were held alongside the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan from March 5 to March 14, 1998. They were the first Paralympic Winter Games to be held outside Europe.- Sports :...

.

Japan was the only Asian country to compete at the 1964 Paralympics, and also the only Asian country present at the inaugural Winter Games, making it the first Asian nation to have participated in either Summer or Winter Games. It is also the second most successful Asian country overall (behind China

China at the Paralympics

The People's Republic of China first competed at the Paralympic Games in 1984, at the Summer Games in New York, United States.-Medals by Summer Games:-Medals by Winter Games:-See also:*Paralympic competitors for China*Sports in China...

), having won 395 Paralympic medals, of which 118 gold, 134 silver and 143 bronze. This result places it 17th on the all-time Paralympic Games medal table

All-time Paralympic Games medal table

An all-time medal table for all Paralympic Games from 1960 to 2008 Summer Paralympic Games and 1976 to 2010 Winter Paralympic Games is tabulated below....

.

Japan won only a single gold medal at the Tokyo Games (in the men's doubles, category C, in table tennis), but rapidly improved, with two gold in 1968, four in 1972, and ten in 1976, with a peak at eighteen in 2004 - though that number dropped to just five in 2008. In the Winter Games, the country emerged as a notable competitor when it hosted the Nagano Games in 1998, winning twelve gold medals - compared to none at all in previous editions.

By far Japan's most successful Paralympian has been swimmer Mayumi Narita

Mayumi Narita

is a Japanese swimmer, described as "one of the world’s best Paralympic athletes" by the International Paralympic Committee. Japan Today has described her as a "swimming sensation perhaps as great as the Thorpedo but whose name few know"...

, who won fifteen gold medals for her country between 1996 and 2004, making her one of the world's most successful Paralympians of all time.

Medals by Summer Games

Rank
1964 Tokyo 1964 Summer Paralympics The 1964 Summer Paralympics, originally known as the 13th International Stoke Mandeville Games, were the 2nd Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Tokyo, Japan, they were the last Summer Paralympics to take place in the same city as the Summer Olympics until the 1988 Summer Paralympics...	1	5	4	10	13
1968 Tel-Aviv 1968 Summer Paralympics The 1968 Summer Paralympics were the third Paralympic Games to be held. Organised under the guidance of the International Stoke Mandeville Games Federation , they were known as the 17th International Stoke Mandeville Games at the time...	2	2	8	12	16
1972 Heidelberg 1972 Summer Paralympics The 1972 Summer Paralympics, the fourth edition of the Paralympic Games, were held in Heidelberg, West Germany, from August 2 to 11, 1972.- Sports :As with previous Paralympics, the 1972 games were intended for wheelchair athletes only...	4	5	3	12	15
1976 Toronto 1976 Summer Paralympics The 1976 Summer Paralympics were the fifth Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Toronto, in the province of Ontario, Canada from August 3 to 11, 1976...	10	6	3	19	15
1980 Arnhem 1980 Summer Paralympics The 1980 Summer Paralympics were the sixth Paralympic Games. They were held in Papendal, close to the host city of Arnhem, Netherlands, from June 21 to 30, 1980.- Sports :...	9	10	7	26	16
1984 Stoke M.-New York 1984 Summer Paralympics The 1984 Summer Paralympics were the seventh Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in two separate locations, Stoke Mandeville, United Kingdom and in the Mitchel Athletic Complex and Hofstra University in Long Island, New York, United States of America The 1984 Summer Paralympics were the...	9	7	8	24	22
1988 Seoul 1988 Summer Paralympics The 1988 Summer Paralympics were the first Paralympics in 24 years that take place in the same city as the Olympic Games. They took place in Seoul, South Korea. This was the first time the term "Paralympic" came into official use.- Sports :...	17	12	17	46	14
1992 Barcelona 1992 Summer Paralympics The 1992 Summer Paralympics were the ninth Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.- Sports :The games consisted of 487 events spread over fifteen sports. Powerlifting and weightlifting were considered to be a single sport...	8	7	15	30	16
1996 Atlanta 1996 Summer Paralympics The 1996 Paralympic Games in Atlanta, USA were held from 16 August to 25 August. It was the first Paralympics to get mass media sponsorship, and had a budget of USD $81 million....	14	10	13	37	10
2000 Sydney 2000 Summer Paralympics The 2000 Paralympic Games were held in Sydney, Australia, from 18 October to 29 October. The eleventh Summer Paralympic Games, an estimated 3800 athletes took part in the Sydney programme. They commenced with the opening ceremony on 18 October 2000...	13	17	11	41	12
2004 Athens 2004 Summer Paralympics The 2004 Summer Paralympics were held in Athens, Greece, from September 17 to September 28. The twelfth Paralympic Games, an estimated 4,000 athletes took part in the Athens programme, with ages ranging from 11 to 66. Paralympic events had already taken place during the 2004 Summer Olympics as...	17	16	20	53	10
2008 Beijing 2008 Summer Paralympics The 2008 Summer Paralympic Games, the thirteenth Paralympics, took place in Beijing, China from September 6 to September 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao....	5	14	8	27	17
Total	101	107	113	321	16

Medals by Winter Games

Rank
1976 Örnsköldsvik 1976 Winter Paralympics The 1976 Winter Paralympic Games were the first Winter Paralympics. They were held in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden from 21 to 28 February 1976. The disabilities included in this paralympics were blindness and amputees. Sixteen countries took part with 198 athletes...	0	0	0	0	10
1980 Geilo 1980 Winter Paralympics The 1980 Winter Paralympic Games, the second Winter Paralympics, were held from 1 to 7 February 1980 in Geilo, Norway. Eighteen countries took part with 299 athletes. A demonstration event was held in sledge downhill racing. All classes of athletes with locomotor disabilities were able to...	0	0	0	0	11
1984 Innsbruck 1984 Winter Paralympics The 1984 Winter Paralympic Games, were the third Winter Paralympics. They were held from 14 to 20 January 1984 in Innsbruck, Austria. They were the first Winter Games organized by the International Co-ordinating Committee , which was formed on March 15, 1982 in Leysin, Switzerland. These Games were...	0	0	0	0	14
1988 Innsbruck 1988 Winter Paralympics The 1988 Winter Paralympic Games, were the fourth Winter Paralympics, held again in Innsbruck, Austria. These were the last Winter Paralympics to be held in a separate location from the Winter Olympics. Beginning in 1992, the Olympics and the Paralympics were held in the same city or in an adjacent...	0	0	2	2	14
1992 Tignes-Albertsville 1992 Winter Paralympics The 1992 Winter Paralympics were the fifth Winter Paralympics. They were the first winter Paralympics to be celebrated concurrently with the Olympic Games. They were held in Tignes and Albertville, France, from March 25 to April 1, 1992...	0	0	2	2	19
1994 Lillehammer 1994 Winter Paralympics The 1994 Winter Paralympics, the sixth Winter Paralympics, were held in Lillehammer, Norway, from 10–19 March 1994. These Games marked the first time the Paralympic Winter Games were held in the same location as the Winter Olympics, a tradition that has continued through an agreement of cooperation...	0	3	3	6	18
1998 Nagano 1998 Winter Paralympics The 1998 Winter Paralympics, the seventh Winter Paralympics, were held alongside the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan from March 5 to March 14, 1998. They were the first Paralympic Winter Games to be held outside Europe.- Sports :...	12	16	13	41	4
2002 Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Paralympics The 2002 Winter Paralympics, the eighth Winter Paralympics, were held in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, from March 7 to March 16, 2002. A total of 416 athletes from 36 nations participated....	0	0	3	3	22
2006 Turin 2006 Winter Paralympics The 2006 Winter Paralympic Games, the ninth Winter Paralympics, took place in Turin, Italy from 10 to 19 March 2006. These were the first Winter Paralympic Games to be held in Italy. They were also the first Paralympics to use the new paralympics logo....	2	5	2	9	8
2010 Vancouver 2010 Winter Paralympics The 2010 Winter Paralympics, officially the X Paralympic Winter Games, or the 10th Winter Paralympics, were held in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia, Canada from March 12 to 21, 2010. The Opening Ceremony took place in BC Place Stadium in Vancouver and the Closing Ceremony in Whistler...	3	3	5	11	8
Total	17	27	30	74	11