|
|
|
 |
My View on the World Championships
|
This summer has been a very busy and exciting one for the
International Paralympic Committee, with seven World
Championships in IPC sports taking place all over the world.
The fact that we are responsible for these Championships,
contributes to the unique role of the IPC in the international
sporting world. Looking at the structure of mainstream sport,
there are on the one hand the International Olympic Committee
that governs the Olympic Games and other Games-specific
organizations such as the Commonwealth Games Federation.
On the other hand, there are the international sports federations,
which are the representative bodies for a single sport
and which govern sport specific championships.We, the IPC,
combine these two roles as we are the governing body for 13
sports and at the same time are the responsible organisation
for the Paralympic Games.
I have often asked myself how can these tasks be accomplished
in a satisfactory way taking into consideration the limited
resources of an organisation like ours.The answer to this
question became evident at the World Championships,which
I was able to attend this summer, namely Athletics and Table
Tennis. It is the volunteers and the organising committees on
the spot, who make the difference.Thanks to their immeasurable
commitment, the championships have reached a new level.
But there is still a lot to do. In the past years, our main
focus was clearly on the Paralympic Games. Now, with
the high expertise available within Paralympic Organising
Committees, we can put a stronger focus on the World and
Regional Championships.
In addition, the possibilities to restructure our sports are a
topic on our agenda. Whereas some sports have become an
integrated part of International Sports Federations, others
have chosen to found independent organizations for their
sport like Wheelchair Basketball did in 1993. Such changes
would affect the governance of the sports and thus also of
the World Championships. However, I am convinced that we
will find the best solution for each sport on an individual basis.
The high level of performance at all World Championships
is reflected in the countless world records broken in the last
few weeks and months. It seems that the Sydney Paralympic
Games pushed the athletes to strive for more.Many events
also serve as qualifiers for the 2004 Paralympic Games in
Athens, Greece, and we have enough indications to expect
intense competitions in 2004.
I would like to congratulate all athletes who competed at
their best this summer and look forward to a successful
conclusion of this IPC World Championships season with
the events in Wheelchair Dance Sport in Poland in October
and Swimming in Argentina in December.
|
|
  
|
