Para Hockey, also known as sledge hockey or para ice hockey, is a sport designed to enable athletes with physical disabilities to play ice hockey. Invented in the early 1960s at a rehabilitation center in Stockholm, Sweden, the sport has grown to be played in multiple countries and made its debut at the Winter Paralympics in 1994. It follows the same rules as ice hockey, featuring six players on the ice, including the goalie. Players sit on sledges that consist of a metal frame with a mounted seat ('bucket') and two skate blades attached underneath for balance. Sledges can be customized to meet individual athletes' needs. Players wear full hockey gear, are strapped into the sledge, and use two specially designed hockey sticks with picks on one end for propulsion and a curved blade on the other for handling and shooting the puck.