Paralympic Competition

Paralympic competition refers to sports offered for athletes with physical disabilities, vision loss, and cognitive disabilities. The most important competitions are the quadrennial summer and winter Paralympic Games held in the same years as the Olympic Games; however, Paralympic competition also includes the local, national, and international events which lead to participation in the Paralympic Games.

This page focuses on the governance of Paralympic competition, both internationally and within the United States. Several organizations will be mentioned in this discussion. Click on the following links for profiles of these organizations.

International and USA Sport Governance Organizations

There are four major "players" in the governance of sports for USA athletes in the Paralympic movement, namely the the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), International Olympic Committee (IOC), United States Olympic Committee (USOC), and United States Paralympics. A brief overview of these organizations is provided in the following figure.

Role of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). The IPC has the primary leadership role in the governance of Paralympic sports. The focus of IPC efforts is the conduct of the quadrennial summer and winter Paralympic Games; however, the IPC also conducts or sanctions other international multi-disability competitions including world and regional championships. The IPC sports committees establish the rules of each sport, athlete classification criteria and procedures, and classifier training and authorization procedures. In addition, the IPC is involved in the promotion of Paralympic sport worldwide and the education of coaches and officials.

Role of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).  The IOC currently does not have a direct role in the governance of Paralympic sports. However, the international sports federations that are affiliated with the IOC have established the sports rules that typically serve as the basis for the rules of the Paralympic sports. In addition, the eligibility criteria for some Paralympic sports require athletes to be members of the appropriate international sports federation.

Role of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC). The USOC serves as the National Paralympic Committee (NPC) in the United States. The IPC requires that NPCs be responsible for the following functions. The USOC accomplishes these tasks through its Paralympic Division and Games Preparation Division. Athletes with a disability contribute through the USOC Athletes Advisory Committee.

Role of United States Paralympics. U.S. Paralympics is a separate organization from the USOC. The current goals (December 2001) of U.S. Paralympics are to work collaboratively with the USOC Paralympic Division to:

International and USA Disability Sport Organizations

There are six disability sports organizations (DSOs) in the United States that are involved in the Paralympic movement, namely NDSA, USABA, SOI, WSUSA, DSUSA, and DAAA (see figure). These DSOs offer "grass-roots" programs for athletes with a disability. Although there is considerable variation amongst the DSOs, typical components of sports programs include athlete development camps, various levels of competition, and in some cases, a network of local clubs that offer regular opportunities for coaching and training.

NDSA, USABA, SOI, WSUSA, DSUSA, and DAAA have opportunities to provide input with respect to the governance of Paralympic sports through their membership as community-based multisport organizations within the USOC, as well as through the Paralympic Division of the USOC and United States Paralympics.

These DSOs also may impact governance decisions through their affiliations with the international disability sports organizations which have membership in the IPC. DSO affiliations with international organizations are depicted in the following figure.

For further information about the USA and international disability sport organizations, go to the "Organizations" section of this web site.

Role of the National Governing Bodies

One objective of the Olympic and Amateur Sports Act (see the "Laws" section of this web site) is to encourage the USOC-member national governing bodies (NGBs) to assume greater responsibility for elite athletes with a disability. Likely connections between Paralympic sports and NGBs are shown in the following figures.

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Interest in and progress toward accommodating athletes with a disability is uneven across NGBs. Typical accommodations by NGBs that have embraced the responsibility for athletes with a disability include rule modifications; camps and clinics; educational programs for athletes, coaches, and officials; and competition opportunities. To date (December 2001), NGBs have not assumed responsibility for tasks related to international competition such as team selection, coach selection, classification, uniforming, or travel.

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