Sir Ludwig GuttmannCBEFRS (3 July 1899 – 18 March 1980) was a Germanneurologist who started the Stoke Mandeville Games. That was a sporting event for people with disabilities. It developed into the Paralympic Games. He was a Jewish doctor who fled Nazi Germany just before the start of the Second World War., Guttmann was one of the first people who organized physical activities for people with disabilities.
In September 1943, the British government asked Guttmann to establish the National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville Hospital. The Royal Air Force was worried about the treatment and rehabilitation of pilots with spine injuries. It was the first specialist unit for treating spinal injuries in the United Kingdom. Guttman was the director until 1966. He organised the first Stoke Mandeville Games for disabled war veterans, which was held at the hospital on 29 July 1948, the same day as the opening of the London Olympics. They all had spinal cord injuries and competed in wheelchairs.[2]