IPC support grants empower Para athletes to success at World Championships

Four of the 10 Para athletes who benefitted from IPC grant support to compete at September 2025’s World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi, India, won medals, including two who made history as newly crowned world champions.

Libya’s Mahmoud Rajab was his country’s first-ever Para athletics world champion with success in the men’s discus F57, while winner of the men’s 400m T11 race Guillaume Junior Atangana became the first refugee athlete in any sport to win a world title. Saudi Arabia’s Abdulrahman Alqurashi won silver in the men’s 100m T53 while Lithuania’s Oksana Dobrovolskaja claimed bronze in the women’s discus F11.

In addition, several Para athletes who received IPC competition grant support to compete in New Delhi set regional, Championship or national records, as well as personal bests, and four Para athletes competed at their first-ever World Championships.

The opportunity for the 10 athletes to compete at the World Para Athletics Championships was facilitated by the IPC who provided competition support grants through its Sport for Mobility programme to six National Paralympic Committees (NPCs).

The IPC grants covered costs such as travel, accommodation, access to classification, and entry fees for the event. By removing the financial constraints often faced by NPCs to send Para athletes to major events, the IPC aims to increase the diversity and quality of talent competing in international Para sport competitions and empower more athletes on the pathway to Paralympic Games qualification.

Kristina Molloy, the IPC’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer, said: “Through our Sport for Mobility programme, the IPC was thrilled to support 10 Para athletes from six NPCs with competition support grants to compete at the recent World Para Athletics Championships. To see the athletes perform so well at the highest level, winning medals, setting records and achieving personal bests is exactly what we want to achieve through the provision of competition support grants to NPCs.

“To grow and strengthen the Paralympic Movement, it is essential that we increase the diversity and depth of Para athletes competing at the high-performance level. Through the provision of competition support grants to NPCs, we are enabling Para athletes to compete at international events they otherwise aren’t able to attend, against the best athletes in the world. This is driving up standards and putting athletes in a stronger position to qualify for the Paralympic Games.”

Achieving sporting excellence 

In winning gold as Libya’s sole athlete in New Delhi, Rajab set a new Championship record and African record with a discus throw of 46.73m.

Having won a historic bronze medal for the Refugee Paralympic Team at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, Atangana ran a season’s best 51.95 seconds to top the podium after one lap of the track.

For Dobrovolskaja, her bronze medal was the result of a personal best discus throw and culmination of years of perseverance.

“It turned out to be an interesting chronology: in my first World Championship I took fifth place, in the second fourth place, and in this third championship I won bronze, finally earning a long-awaited medal,” said Dobrovolskaja who threw 37.24m.

“I really hope that the trajectory continues upward and that someday it will hang on gold my chest.”

Dobrovolskaja also spoke passionately about the importance of the IPC’s support:

“It’s extremely important to have as many support as possible. Our training centre keeps growing, and with that, more people are involved with Para sport. That is why the support to attend international events is so important for us. I am sure that more of the world hears about us — athletes from Lithuania.”

Two Nepali Para athletes made their World Championships debut in New Delhi courtesy of IPC competition support grants including Himal Aryal who set a personal best with a 6.26m throw in the men’s shot put F55.

IPC grants also supported a second Saudi Arabian athlete in addition to silver medallist Alqurashi. World Championships debutant Hadeel Al Thawi set a personal best of 6.73m in the women’s shot put F34.

A further five Para athletes from four NPCs competed at the World Championships having received IPC competition support grants earlier in the year, enabling them to attend important Grand Prix events in preparation for New Delhi. These included Cyprus’s Viktoras Pentaras who set a personal best in the men’s long jump T37, Guatemala’s Ericka Violeta Esteban Villatoro who set a season’s best in the women’s 400m T38 and Puerto Rico’s Yamile Diaz Colin who set a personal best in the women’s 200m T64 and a season’s best in 100m T64.

Launched in 2025, Sport for Mobility programme is funded thanks to a grant from the Toyota Mobility Foundation and is a cornerstone of the IPC’s commitment to Para sport for development. By working with member organisations, the IPC is strengthening the sport ecosystem, developing athletes, and building more inclusive communities. Through investments in athlete development, leadership, and participation, the programme includes support for training and competition opportunities for NPCs and Refugee Paralympic Team athletes.