Eugène Rubens-Alcais

Eugène Rubens-Alcais (7 May 1884 – 8 March 1963) was a French deaf activist in the field of sports. He is known for introducing the Deaflympics in 1924 for deaf sportspeople. He was determined to establish international competitions for the deaf, as they were considered as intellectually disabled people during his lifetime. Alcais believed that deaf athletes should have their own independent international competitions and promoted the idea in his own deaf sports magazine called The Silent Sportsman. In 1924, he was instrumental in hosting the inaugural Summer Deaflympics in his home country, France. Alcais is also the founder of Comité International des Sports des Sourds (now called the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf), the world governing body of deaf sports. He is often called the "father of Deaflympics" or "father of Olympics for the deaf".