NPC Germany receives top award

"Of course I am happy about this order. It has been personally given to me, but it is for the entire German Disability Federation. Without the participation of all in our association such an award would not be conceivable."

Para sport in Germany has received recognition from the federal government after the country’s National Paralympic Committee President was honoured with a major award.

Friedhelm Julius Beucher has been given an Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier for his social commitment to Para sport, in the association he founded for social services in Bergneustadt and as a former Bundestag delegate and headmaster.

"Of course I am happy about this order. It has been personally given to me, but it is for the entire German Disability Federation. Without the participation of all in our association such an award would not be conceivable," said Beucher.

Beucher was one of 30 citizens given the award at a ceremony in Berlin, and President Steinmeier praised his long-term dedication to Para sport.

"For decades, Friedhelm Julius Beucher has been working to promote the participation of people with an impairment in the Federal Republic, as headmaster, politician and, since 2009, as president of the German Federation of Disabled Persons,” he said.

“In doing so, he is equally committed to promoting the individual athletes, whether in sports or in broad activity, and that society is addressing the needs of people with an impairment.”