Malta returned to Olympic competition at the 1948 London Summer Olympic Games, represented by Nestor Jacono in athletics. Jacono was the first Maltese athlete to travel by plane to the Olympics, and he trained under a Canadian coach for 15 days before competing. Francis Zammit Cutajar served as Opening Ceremony flag bearer. The same year also saw the Stoke Mandeville Games, which became the forerunner of the Paralympic Games, marking the early development of international sport for athletes with disabilities.