NRPA awarded $150,000 (£92,205) in grants to 12 park and recreation agencies in the United States to expand local community programmes and opportunities for injured military personnel and people with physical disabilities.

The 12 agencies, operating in ten states, will receive funds ranging from $6,000 (£3,688) to $25,000 (£15,368) for purposes, including but not limited to: Paralympic programmes, adaptive equipment, training and education of staff/programme leaders, programme enhancements, and ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliance for enhancing recreation experiences.

A total of 126 park and recreation agencies submitted applications for the grant programme, which is sponsored by the US Defence Department .

Currently, more than 35,000 of the 21 million physically-disabled Americans are military personnel who have been injured during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Barbara Tulipane, the chief executive officer of NRPA, said: "Through NRPA’s USOC Paralympic Grant Initiative for military inclusion programming, we are providing what is a critical need for many local communities across the United States.

"In addition to supporting recovering service members in grant recipient cities, we hope this program will serve to encourage further support for military inclusion programming throughout the country."

Stephanie Streeter, the acting chief executive of the USOC, said: "This is an important investment in our partners and the future of Paralympic programming.

"Together, we can impact and expand sports programming for people with physical disabilities and injured service members in communities across the country."