PARALYMPIC AND PARA SPORTS NEWS

Panasonic recently announced that the company has agreed on a partnership with the Beijing 2008 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (BOCOG) to become an Official Partner of the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games in the Video and Audio Equipment Category.

Bonn, Germany - The third International Olympic Committee (IOC) Co-ordination Commission for the Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games in 2012 took place in London, Great Britain, from 20 to 22 May.

Tourists with a disability from all over the world will now have better access to Beijing's famous Forbidden City and Great Wall following extensive renovations. New facilities were opened on 18 May, to mark the National Help-the-Disabled Day in China.

As part of the Catalonian Games for Adapted Sport, the second Spanish Paralympic School Day (PSD) took place at the Can Llobet Public School of Barberá del Vallés last week. Organized by the Catalan Federation for Physically Disabled (FCEDF) and supported by the Spanish Paralympic Committee, this educational day reached more than 100 school children.

Vancouver, Canada - From 14 to 16 May, the third official Project Review was held between the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC).

On 10 May 2008, US Paralympic swimmer Jessica Long received the Juan Antonio Samaranch IOC President’s Disabled Athlete Award. The award was presented to Long during a ceremony at the 2008 Paralympic World Cup in Manchester, Great Britain.

Message to Chinese Earthquake Victims and Families

Bonn, Germany - Yesterday, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Governing Board (GB) concluded its 50th official meeting, which was held in Tehran, Iran.

According to a recent survey, 93% of the UK public see Paralympic athletes as good role models for young people. A total of 69% of those polled say that there should be more media coverage of Paralympic Sport.

The National Paralympic Committees of Spain and China signed a significant document last week which would allow a free-flow of information exchange about Paralympic sports and events. This will in effect promote the Paralympic Movement, leaving a permanent open pipeline of knowledge and experiences between Spain and China.

From 26 to 27 April, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Classification Committee met to discuss implementation, education and research related to the approved IPC Classification Code.

The Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) is organizing a regional summit that is designed to bridge gaps in opportunities for girls and women. Officially titled “Asian Women in Paralympic Sport Leadership Summit”, the event will take place from 1 to 3 May in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Last week, the Chinese government adopted a law amendment to better protect the country's more than 83 million persons with a disability, in the run-up to the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games in September.

An exciting new initiative to design a low cost sport wheelchair for Basketball and Tennis is underway through a partnership between Motivation Charitable Trust, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF). The International Paralympic Committe (IPC) was instrumental in bringing the partners together to address a major gap in low cost high quality equipment currently available for athletes worldwide.

Bonn, Germany - Today, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced that the fifth VISTA Conference will be held in Vancouver, Canada, from 22 to 26 March 2009. The Conference will follow the Chef de Mission Seminar for the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, held in Vancouver from 19 to 21 March 2009.

Over the last weekend, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Athletes’ Council (AC) met in Amman, Jordan, to discuss athlete-related topics on the agenda. While defining its strengths and opportunities during a strategic review session, the AC also discussed problems over the years and the threats that could be dealt with in the future.