New ideas and visions today not only enter people’s mind
as abstract concepts. Instead, they are visualised in order
to successfully convey their strong message.
There is no doubt that the IPC has embarked on a new road
into the future.We have not only developed a new vision, but
have also taken a new direction towards our mission and our
key objectives, which will be presented to the IPC General
Assembly in November.
For the IPC it was clear that this historical departure into a
new era should also be reflected in our look. Therefore, we
have taken the decision—which was not an easy step—
to modernise our logo and create a new motto. Logos and
mottos are always subject to individual taste and it would
be a frightening idea to think that everybody should have a
similar taste. Therefore, I have been extremely pleased during
the last few weeks to receive a lot of positive feedback
regarding our new logo and motto from our stakeholders
and external partners alike. The transition from our old to
the new look will take some time, which is natural for an
organisation like ours. But I am confident that the new
look—once completely established—will truly visualise
the spirit of an organisation fully in motion.
In the last weeks, I attended two major celebrations of
Paralympic sport. The first was the Laureus World Sports
Awards Ceremony in Monaco on 20 May. The standing
ovations, which Michael Milton, a four-time gold medal
winner at the Salt Lake 2002 Paralympic Games, received
from a very high-profile audience was impressive—as it
clearly showed the enormous respect which Paralympic
athletes have earned in the past years. All the sporting
celebrities present at the event embraced Michael and the
other four nominees as some of the best athletes in the
world, which I found very inspiring, especially with regard to
the IPC’s goal to promote the integration of sport for athletes
with a disability into the non-disabled sporting world.
At the Paralympic Day in Torino, which was hosted by the
Organising Committee for the Torino 2006 Paralympic Winter
Games, the citizens of Torino celebrated their unique role as
hosts of the best Paralympic Winter athletes which will begin
in less than three years time. The Paralympic Movement won
many new friends, supporters and admirers during this day,
which featured different sport exhibitions at various levels.
I am proud that the IPC has established the “International
Paralympic Day”. In September, the inaugural event will take
place in Bonn, but I already envision future International
Paralympic Days, celebrated in many countries around the
world with a specific motto each year as a global tribute to
our athletes and a promotional tool to win more people with
a disability to participate in sport—may it be on a grass roots
or elite level.
