New Year's Message from IPC President

The holiday season has now passed and the promise of a prosperous new year is the hope of every individual. I can say that the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has widened its view of the possibilities to come after a successful year in 2008.

The Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games were certainly a highlight that will remain a milestone for years to come. With so many records broken, and so many new fans that have gathered around the Paralympic Movement, the future is very bright indeed.

In 2009, we have several big events taking place, including the last regular season of Winter Sport before the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, the first Paralympic Winter World Cup in Sweden, the General Assembly in Kuala Lumpur, International Paralympic Day in Berlin, the ten-year anniversary of our headquarters in Bonn, Germany, and 20 years of the IPC. This year also will be the decision for the 2016 Host City of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

My hope this year is for your confidence, loyalty and interest to remain not just with the IPC and the Paralympic Movement, but most especially with the athletes. They continue to find new ways to demonstrate the Paralympic values of courage, determination, inspiration and equality.

I wish you all a most fruitful and Happy New Year!