WATCHING the recent Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang has been both humbling and awe-inspiring.

I know Paralympic sport is nowhere near as high-profile as the Olympics – the fact it is on Channel Four while BBC have the main event rights is proof of that.

But there is no denying the talent and human achievement of those involved in the games in South Korea.

It may not be every sports fan’s cup of tea but I cannot get enough of it when it’s on television.

Of course, watching the likes of Sir Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis-Hill has been unbelievable in recent years, the Paralympian competitors impress me even more.

Watching the visually-impaired downhill skiing for example – now that was incredible.

I remember going skiing as a child on a school trip to Austria and after a week I was still only able to half-master stopping at the bottom of the nursery slopes in Wildschönau – and not without a few scary near-misses.

So I doth my ski hat to those who not only race downhill at pace but who do so with hardly any view of where they are going and just a trusty guide shouting instructions of when and where to turn.

I expect most competing would laugh of suggestions of being brave but for me that takes some guts. It is the same with those who compete in the summer equivalent.

Six years ago I attended both the Olympics and Paralympics in London and had the same feeling of awe watching wheelchair athletes and those with other disabilities going for it.

Swimmers without full arms or legs, runners on blades like Jonnie Peacock.

It is a true wonder to see.

It may have taken time but the Paralympic movement is growing each and every year and that is down in no small part top Bolton’s own Sir Philip Craven, who was head of the International Paralympic Committee until just last year.

A former wheelchair basketballer, the ex-Bolton School student helped raise the profile and when once it was hardly seen or heard, it now gets worldwide television exposure.

We often go on about sports men and women being role models for our youngsters and they are.

But there can be no greater inspiration than seeing those who overcome the challenges life throws at them to compete in the sport they love. That is the message the Paralympics sends out.