Joey Reiman, credited by the Games' legacy organisation BlazeSports America for helping change the perception of disability in the United States and around the world forever, will be the first recipient of the "Triumph of the Human Spirit Award".

The 61-year-old, dubbed the "Moses of Marketing", was tasked with creating a campaign that would explain the Paralympics and its competitors to a US audience with no prior awareness of the Games and a predominant misunderstanding of disability.

Reiman is the chief executive and founder of global ideation consultancy BrightHouse, whose mission is to bring a sense and centre of purpose to the world of business in the belief that an organisation's "Master Idea" is both the key and power to realisation of its full potential.

The same principle was applied by Reiman to Paralympic athletes, something which he gave perspective to in his book Thinking for a Living. 

"What I learned was that these athletes were not disabled, they were superabled," he said.

"The Olympics is where heroes are made.

"The Paralympics is where heroes come.

"I've always thought big and figured the only limits are the ones we put on ourselves.

"That's why one of the ideas I'm proudest of is the campaign we did for the 1996 Paralympic Movement."

The Atlanta 1996 Paralympics increased awareness of disability sport in the United States ©Getty Images



The Award honours "those individuals who embody the passion and spirit" of the late BlazeSports America executive director Jon McCullough, who passed away in August. 

"Jon was a two-time Paralympian, his first games being Atlanta in 1996, and a passionate advocate for the Paralympic movement and human rights in general," said Mara Galic, director of operations and evaluation at BlazeSports America.

"He left BlazeSports and this world far too soon but his legacy will live on in BlazeSports and the Spirit Award recipients."

BlazeSports, which was established in 1993, serves more than 5,000 youth, adults and veterans with or without a disability across the state of Georgia each year.

Its purpose is to inspire and deliver positive experiences and change the lives of children and adults with a disability through sport.

The Georgia Disability Sport Awards, presented by financial services company Primerica, honour athletes, coaches, volunteers and teams who have made a significant contribution over the past year.

Nominees must be residents of the state of Georgia and the nominations closed on October 10. 

This year's event is due to be held on November 9 from 2pm to 5pm at the Atlanta History Center.

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