About The International Paralympic Committee

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement and is based in Bonn, Germany. Founded on 22 September 1989 as a non-profit organisation, we aim to be athlete-centred and membership-focussed in all our endeavours.
Working with our 200 plus member organisations, we use Para sport as a vehicle to advance the lives of the world’s 1.2 billion persons with disabilities. The work of the Paralympic Movement has a transformational impact on society. A strong belief that Change Starts with Sport motivates our international workforce to work as one team, aligned and focussed on fulfilling our vision and mission through delivery of the IPC Strategic Plan.

The IPC is a membership-based organisation, and our role is to serve and support our members who are made up of National Paralympic Committees, International Federations, Regional Organisations and International Organisations of Sport for the Disabled.
As of 1 January 2024, the IPC has 208 member organisations consisting of:

183 National Paralympic Committees

Act as the sole representative of the Paralympic Movement in their territory. They have the exclusive right to enter their athletes in the Paralympic Games and other IPC competitions.

17 International Federations

International Federations’ responsibilities include technical jurisdiction and guidance over the competition and training venues of their respective sports during the Paralympic Games. Have responsibility for governing sports on the Paralympic programme. There are 13 Olympic and Paralympic Federations and 4 Paralympic Sport Federations.

5 Regional Organisations

Focus on regional Games, member support and regional co-operation, covering Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania.

3 International Organisations of Sport for the Disabled

International Organisations of Sports for the Disabled (IOSDs) are independent organisations recognised by the IPC as the sole representatives of a specific impairment group. IOSDs work in conjunction with the IPC to provide specific expertise to develop sport for athletes with an impairment from the grassroots level to the elite level. They act as the governing body for some of the impairment specific sports that are a part of the Paralympic Games programme.The IPC currently recognises three IOSDs: IBSA, Virtus and World Abilitysport (created following the merger of CPISRA and IWAS)

Recognised International Sports Federations

In its Mission Statement, the IPC commits to ‘promote and contribute to the development of sport opportunities and competitions, from initiation level to elite level, for Paralympic athletes as the foundation of elite Paralympic sport’.

To achieve this, the IPC recognises the importance of creating a Paralympic Family network of recognised international sport federations that are not eligible to be IPC members, but contribute to the development of sport opportunities for athletes associated with the Paralympic Movement and have organisational goals that are compatible with the Vision and Mission of the IPC.

Paralympic Sports

Paralympic sports are organised competitive sporting activities which are part of the Paralympic Games sport programme and governed by International Sport Federations or International Organisations of Sport for the Disabled (IOSD).

Some sports, such as Para archery and wheelchair basketball, were developed out of rehabilitation programmes for World War II veterans.

Paralympic sports comprise summer and winter sports contested at the Paralympic Games and Paralympic Winter Games. The number of sports, disciplines and medal events may change from one Paralympic Games edition to another.

There are currently 29 Paralympic sports sanctioned by the IPC; 23 summer and six winter sports. Para climbing is the most recent addition to the Paralympic Games programme. The IPC approved a proposal by the LA28 Organising Committee to include the sport.

The newest winter sport is Para snowboard, which was first introduced at the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games.

 SUMMER SPORTS

 WINTER SPORTS

Many Para sports, for example, Para athletics, Para cycling, and Para alpine skiing, are comparable to their equivalent Olympic sport, with similar rules and scoring. However, there are also a number of Para sports which are specific to the Paralympic Movement such as Boccia, Wheelchair rugby and Goalball.

Para Sports (non-Paralympic sports)

In addition, there are Para sports recognised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) but not currently contested at the Paralympic Games.

Para sports not currently contested at the Paralympic Games

As well as the 28 Paralympic sports, there are Para sports recognised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) which are not currently contested at the Paralympic Games. These are Para sports whose international federations contribute to the development of sport opportunities for Para athletes and have organisational goals that are compatible with the Vision and Mission of the IPC. Some of these used to be at the Paralympic Games and may be included for the first time in future.

Para sports in this category include:

Sports which used to be at the Paralympic Games but aren’t today

There are a number of discontinued summer Para sports. These include:

  • Basketball ID
  • Football ID
  • Football
  • 7-a-Side
  • Lawn bowls
  • Sailing
  • Snooker
  • Dartchery
  • Weightlifting
  • Wrestling

Intellectual impairment sport

Virtus is the International Federation for athletes with intellectual impairment. Many different sports are contested at Virtus events. To compete in Virtus events, there are three eligible groups:

  • II1 (Intellectual Impairment)
  • II2 (Significant Intellectual Impairment)
  • II3 (Autism)

Some athletes with an intellectual impairment in the II1 category are also eligible to compete at the Paralympic Games. The Paralympic sports with an intellectual impairment classification are Para athletics, Para swimming, Para table tennis and Para taekwondo.

International Federations (IFs)

IFs are recognised as the sole representative of a Paralympic sport. They have the right, among others, to submit motions; attend, speak and vote at meetings; nominate candidates for appropriate IPC Bodies; and participate in IPC activities.

In addition, IFs can conduct their own competitions and propose the programme for their respective Para sport in the Paralympic Games for approval by the IPC.

National Paralympic Committees (NPCs)

NPCs are the national representatives for the worldwide Paralympic Movement. They have the right, among others, to submit motions; attend, speak and vote at meetings; nominate candidates for appropriate IPC Bodies; and participate in IPC activities.

In addition, NPCs can enter their athletes into the Paralympic Games, subject to compliance with the Constitution and Regulations.

International Organisations of Sport for the Disabled (IOSDs)

IOSDs are independent organisations recognised by the IPC as the sole representatives of a specific impairment group. They have the right, among others, to submit motions; attend, speak and vote at meetings; nominate candidates for appropriate IPC Bodies; and participate in IPC activities.

In addition, IOSDs can conduct their own competitions, subject to the Para sport calendar.

Regional Organisations (ROs)

ROs represent IPC members across specific areas of the world. They have the right, among others, to appoint delegates to speak on their behalf at IPC meetings. They do not have the right to vote, submit motions, or nominate candidates for election at meetings of the IPC. ROs can propose candidates for membership within IPC Bodies and participate in IPC activities.

In addition, ROs act as a liaison to the IPC within their region, and coordinate sanctioned regional competitions. The IPC currently recognises five Regional Organisations.