Athletes Committee Formulates Stand on Several Issues
The IPC Athletes Committee (IPC AC) is a democratically elected standing committee of the IPC, and its mission is to ensure that athletes' needs are represented, and that athletes are fully part of decision-making. The IPC AC met at the IPC Headquarters in Bonn in March, and would like to thank the IPC staff for organizing a successful meeting.
In Sydney, all the athletes of the Paralympic Games had the opportunity to elect the summer sport representatives to the IPC AC. A polling station was set up in the main dining hall, and all AA-accredited athletes were eligible to vote. Members elected were: Rose Atieno Olang (Kenya), Ljiljana Ljubisic (Canada), Hamish MacDonald (Australia), Enrique Sanchez-Guijo Acevedo (Spain), James Thomson (USA) and Ashraf Eid Marie (Egypt). The winter sport representatives are Andreas Schiestl (Austria) and Kjartan Haugen (Norway). As the new members were unfamiliar with the IPC organization, a major proportion of the meeting was devoted to explaining the structure and function of the various parts of the IPC.
The committee developed terms of reference, and elected the following members to its positions: Kjartan Haugen - Chair, Ljijana Ljubisic – Vice-Chair, and Rose Atieno Olang - Secretary. After discussion, several recommendations and statements were put forward to the IPC:
- As a result of the suspension of INAS-FID, the IPC AC felt the need to express its concern for ID athletes, and composed the following statement:
“The IPC Athletes Committee supports the actions and decisions of the IPC Executive Committee regarding the suspension of the INAS-FID organization, however wishes to stress serious concern with the suspension of athletes with an intellectual disability from events sanctioned by the IPC (i.e. Paralympic Games, Regional Games). Athletes, regardless of disability, should not and cannot be held responsible for a breach in the administrative process of an organization. The Athletes Committee supports the IPC in its collaboration with INAS-FID to resolve the process and to ultimately develop a new eligibility verification system leading to the expedient reinstatement of competitive event opportunities for athletes with an intellectual disability in IPC-sanctioned competitions.”
- The committee discussed the need to formally address the issue of doping and provide a firm descriptive stance, especially with issues that have risen surrounding powerlifting. The committee developed a detailed statement which outlines the roles and responsibilities of the IPC, National Paralympic Committees and athletes in the fight against doping. To develop formal relationships with external partners like the World Anti-Doping Agency, and education of athletes and administrators, are essential tasks in order to ultimately eliminate doping from sports.
- Athletes who try to cheat in the classification process are a problem the IPC has to address. The IPC should review its classification procedures to ensure that objectivity is paramount in the determination of athlete eligibility/classification.
- The IPC AC recommended that the IPC further develop its internal and external communication practices.
In addition, the IPC AC will start to identify potential partner organizations for athlete equipment and service projects in developing countries.
Kjartan Haugen
Chair, IPC Athletes Committee
|
