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The Inspiration
 The mascot creator searched for an image that would portray the four unique values for the ATHENS 2004 Paralympic Games: inspiration, strength, pursuit, celebration. At the same time, the creator
wanted the mascot to express the unique flavour that hosting the Paralympic
Games in Greece would bring to the event.
The creator found what he was looking for in the image of the sea. The sea
has been a core element of Hellenic culture, its representations embracing a
huge variety of applications and connotations, from peace and tranquility to
passion and strength. The sea element has provided the Greek mythology with
numerous gods and characters, as well as a series of heroes who have managed to
overcome human limitations and offer thrilling moments and narrations with their
achievements.
The mascot for the 2004 Paralympic Games is a sea ¨C horse (hippocampus) named
Proteas, from a divinity of the Greek mythology. The name embraces the notion of
excellence that is a core notion of the Paralympic Games, as the athletes seek
to overcome themselves in achieving even higher competition performances. The
Greek word ¡°protos¡± means first in rank, excellent.
Please welcome Proteas, the mascot for the ATHENS 2004 Paralympic Games.
Proteas will be an ideal ambassador of the Athens Paralympic Games around the
world and will inspire everyone to take part in this elite sport event, hosted
for the very first time in Athens in September 2004.
Common visual elements between Paralympic and
Olympic mascots
Proteas presents the following common visual elements with Phivos and Athena,
the Olympic Games mascots:
- The same fine lines apply to all three mascots¡¯ design
- Their names
are written using the same typography, which has been designed especially for
the mascot names
- They all bear the ATHENS 2004 brand names and the
distinctive elements of the event they promote (IOC emblem for the Olympic
Games, IPC emblem for the Paralympic Games)
- Their names have been inspired
from Greek mythology and heritage
(www.athens2004.com) | 
