“We are delighted to partner with WOWOW to produce this documentary series. Athletes are at the heart of the Paralympic Movement and it is their performances and stories that help act as a catalyst for greater inclusion in society."

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has announced it has signed a five year agreement with WOWOW, Japan’s leading premium pay TV broadcaster, to produce a series of documentaries on para-athletes in the lead up to the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

Filming will start this month at the IPC Swimming World Championships in Glasgow, Great Britain, and the first episode will be broadcast on WOWOW Prime in 2016.

The documentaries will focus on the stories of a number of para-athletes and will follow their journey to the Rio 2016, PyeongChang 2018 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

Sir Philip Craven, IPC President, said: “We are delighted to partner with WOWOW to produce this documentary series. Athletes are at the heart of the Paralympic Movement and it is their performances and stories that help act as a catalyst for greater inclusion in society.

“There are so many amazing stories to tell about para-athletes and I look forward to watching the series between now and Tokyo 2020.

“The Games in Tokyo are a huge opportunity to grow awareness of the Paralympic Movement in Japan. This documentary series with WOWOW, together with our long-term partnership with NHK, will mean far more television coverage of para-sport in Japan than ever before.”

Nobuya Wazaki, Chairman of WOWOW, said: “We are extremely honoured to be collaborating with the IPC on the production of this exciting documentary series. I strongly believe that ‘diversity’ is one of the most important keywords of our future.

“Through this series, we hope to further increase awareness of the IPC’s aspiration to make for a more equitable and inclusive society for all through para-sport.”

The partnership with WOWOW is the latest IPC initiative to grow awareness of the Paralympic Movement in Japan and Asia, and to the world, ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

In June, the IPC awarded NHK the exclusive broadcast and exhibition rights in Japan for the Paralympic Games through to 2024, in an agreement that is the biggest in Paralympic broadcasting history. The Paralympic Movement’s global governing body also announced a five-year partnership with Dentsu to act as the IPC’s exclusive marketing agency in Japan.

In addition to this documentary series, WOWOW announced earlier this year that it would be broadcasting live coverage of all four Grand Slam Championships in wheelchair tennis – the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.