TheInternational Paralympic Committee (IPC;German:Internationales Paralympisches Komitee) is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement.
The IPC leads the Paralympic Movement, oversees the delivery of theParalympic Games and supports its 200 plus member organisations to enable Para athletes to achieve sporting excellence. Founded on 22 September 1989 inDüsseldorf, then part ofWest Germany, its vision is to "make for an inclusive world through Para sport". Furthermore, the IPC aims to use Para sport as a catalyst to changing attitudes and legislation, creating greater opportunities for the world’s 1.3 billion persons with disabilities.
The IPC has a democratic constitution and structure and is composed of representatives from 185National Paralympic Committees (NPCs),[2] 18 International Federations, three International Organizations of Sport for the Disabled (IOSDs) and five regional organizations.[a] The IPC's headquarters is located inBonn, Germany.
On the basis of being able to organize theParalympic Games more efficiently and to give the Paralympic Movement one voice, the four international organizations of sports for the disabled founded the International Co-ordination Committee of World Sports Organizations for the Disabled (ICC) in 1982. In the upcoming years, other organizations joined and the need for a democratically guided organization emerged, as demanded by the nations participating in the Paralympic Movement. They desired a democratic structure, to improve national and regional representation, which led to the foundation of the IPC as it is known today. The1994 Paralympic Winter Games, in Norway, were the first to be organized by the IPC.
With its 208 member organisations, the IPC functions as an umbrella organization, in contrast to other international sports organizations for athletes with a disability, which are predominantly limited to a single sport or disability.
A 14-member Governing Board is responsible for the governance of the IPC between meetings of the General Assembly. Robert D. Steadward became the first President in 1989. Since 2017,Andrew Parsons is President of the IPC.
The International Paralympic Committee has had three presidents to date. Its founding president, who presided over it from 1989 to 2001, was the CanadianRobert Steadward, who had previously founded the Canadian Sports Fund for the Physically Disabled.[1] He was succeeded in 2001 byPhilip Craven, a British Paralympian and former President of theInternational Wheelchair Basketball Federation, who served as president until 2017. Craven was succeeded by Brazil'sAndrew Parsons, who was IPC Vice President from 2013 to 2017 and a former President of theBrazilian Paralympic Committee.[3]
The IPC Governing Board consists of 14 members, of which 12 are elected at the General Assembly, including the President and Vice President. The most recent election for the Governing Board was held on 12 December 2021:[3]
The IPC Athletes' Council Chairperson, Vladyslava Kravchenko, and IPC Athletes' Council First Vice Chairperson,Josh Dueck, also have voting rights on the board.
On 29 July, the day of the Opening Ceremony of theLondon 1948 Olympic Games,Dr Ludwig Guttmann organised the first competition for wheelchair athletes which he named the Stoke Mandeville Games, a milestone in Paralympics history. They involved 16 injured servicemen and women who took part in archery[6]
1952
Dutch ex-servicemen travelled to England to compete against British athletes and this led to the establishment of theInternational Stoke Mandeville Games.[6]
18–25 September –Rome Summer Paralympics – 400 athletes from 23 countries; 57 events in 8 sports.[7] These Games became known as the 1st Summer Paralympic Games and were the 9th International Stoke Mandeville Games. The Games followed theRome Olympics and used same venues.
1960
International Stoke Mandeville Games Committee (ISMGC) established.[5]
3–12 November –Tokyo Summer Paralympics – 375 athletes from 21 countries; 144 events in 9 sports. Weightlifting added to the program.[7] Opening ceremony held in front of 5,000 spectators.[8]
1968
4–13 November –Tel Aviv Summer Paralympics – 750 athletes from 29 countries; 181 events in 10 sports.[7] New sports included lawn bowls, women's basketball and Men's 100m wheelchair race.
1972
2–11 August –Heidelberg Summer Paralympics – 984 athletes from 43 countries; 1987 events in 10 sports.[7] Events for quadriplegic added to program for the first time.[7] Demonstration events for visually impaired athletes.[7] Heidelberg was used as the Olympic Village in Munich was unavailable as it was converted into private apartments.[8]
21–28 February –Örnsköldsvik Winter Paralympics – 198 athletes from 16 countries; 53 events in 2 sports. FirstWinter Paralympics. Games demonstrated innovations in ski equipment design with 'three-track skiing' using crutches. Demonstration event was sledge racing.[9]
1976
UNESCO Conference established the right for people with a disability to participate in sport and physical education.[5]
1980
21–30 June –Arnhem Summer Paralympics – 1973 athletes from 42 countries; 489 events in 12 sports.Sitting volleyball added to the program.[7] Moscow declined to host the Games.[8] Cerebral palsy athletes compete for the first time.[4][7] There were 12,000 spectators at the opening ceremony.[8]
1980
1–7 February –Geilo Winter Paralympics – 350 athletes from 18 countries;[9] 63 events in 2 sports. Amputee, visual impairment and les autres compete for the first time at a Winter Games.[9]
17–30 June (US) / 22 July – 1 August (UK) –Stoke Mandeville/New York Summer Paralympics – 1100 athletes from 41 countries (UK) and 1,800 from 45 countries (USA); 903 events in 18 sports.[7] New York Games were held at theHofstra University and events were held for amputees, les austres, cerebral palsy and vision impaired athletes. Stoke Mandeville Games were for athletes with a spinal cord disability. It was decided that future Games should be held in one city.boccia,road cycling andfootball 7-a-side added to program.[7]
1984
14–20 January –Innsbruck Winter Paralympics – 457 athletes from 21 countries;[9] 107 events in 3 sports. Cerebral palsy athletes compete for the first time.[9]
1984
1984 Los Angeles Olympics included Men's 1500m and Women's 800m wheelchair races as demonstration events.
On 22 September, International Paralympic Committee (IPC) replaced the ICC as the governing body of the Paralympic movement with CanadianRobert Steadward as its inaugural President.[11][12]
3–14 September –Barcelona Summer Paralympics – 3001 athletes from 33 countries:[7] 431 events in 16 sportsWheelchair tennis was a medal sport for the first time. IOC PresidentJuan Antonio Samaranch attended and endorsed the Games.[5] Inaugural Paralympics for Persons with an Intellectual Disability held inMadrid,Spain immediately after the Games.[7] Final Games organized by ICC.[12]
1992
25 March – 1 April –Tignes/Albertville Winter Paralympics – 475 athletes from 24 countries;[9] 78 events in 3 sports.Biathlon added to the program.[9] Demonstration events held for athletes with an intellectual disability in alpine and cross country skiing.[9] First Winter Games to share Olympic venues.[9]
1992
TheMind, Body and Spirit logo (3 tae-guks) adopted by IPC and used until 2003.[4][12]
International Committee of Sports for the Deaf (CISS) withdraws from the IPC.[12]
1996
16–25 August –Atlanta Summer Paralympics – 3259 athletes from 104 countries; 508 events in 20 sports. Athletes with an intellectual disability included for the first time at a Summer Games.equestrian andtrack cycling discipline added to the program[7] andsailing was a demonstration sport. IPC officially hosted the Games for the first time and assumed responsibility for future Games.[5] First Games to attract worldwide sponsorship. 12,000 volunteers assisted with the operation of the Games.[8]
1998
5–14 March –Nagano Winter Paralympics – 571 athletes from 32 countries;[9] 122 events in 4 sports. Athletes with an intellectual disability included for the first time at a Winter Games. With the internet in its infancy, the official website recorded 7.7 million hits during the Games.[8]
18–29 October –Sydney Summer Paralympics – 3,881 athletes from 122 countries;[7] 551 events in 20 sports. First Games held in theSouthern Hemisphere. Women's events were included in the powerlifting program andwheelchair rugby andsailing were medal sports for the first time.[7] IOC signed a co-operation agreement with IPC to strengthen their relationship.[5][12] Games had comprehensive international television coverage for the first time. Over 340,000 school children attended and were given an insight into Paralympic sport.[8]
On 19 June, IPC and IOC signed an agreement that ensured the practice of "one bid, one city", meaning the same city will host both the Olympic and Paralympic Games.[4][12]
2001
IPC General Assembly suspended athletes with an intellectual disability (ID) from the Paralympic Games due to 69% of athletes who won medals in intellectual disability events at the Sydney Games not having the correct ID verification.[4]
2002
7–16 March –Salt Lake City Winter Paralympics – 416 athletes from 36 countries;[9] 92 events in 5 sports. Worldwide television coverage was secured by the organizers, and there was high demand for tickets.[8]
IPC Governing Board approved the development of a Universal Classification Code.[12]
2003
NewSpirit in motion logo (Agitos) adopted by IPC.[4][12]
2003
IPC signs theWorld Anti-Doping Code and revised its Anti-Doping Code to comply with the World Anti-Doping Code.[5]
2004
17–28 September –Athens Summer Paralympics – 3808 athletes from 135 countries;[7] 517 events in 19 sports.5-a-side football added to the program.[7] A cumulated global TV audience of 1.8 billion watch the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games.[12] Over 3000 journalists covered the Games.[8]
Paralympic Awards are presented for the first time.[12]
2006
10–19 March –Torino Winter Paralympics – 477 athletes from 39 countries;[9] 58 events in 5 sports.A New Classification System for Winter Sports was used for the first time.Wheelchair curling made its Games debut.[9] IPC launched ParalympicSport.TV, an online TV channel, during the Games[12] and it attracted nearly 40,000 unique viewers from 105 nations.
2006
IPC's revenue exceeded EUR 5 million for the first time.[12]
2007
A newIPC Classification Code and International Standards approved at IPC General Assembly meeting held in November.[4][12]
2008
6–17 September –Beijing Summer Paralympics – 3,951 from 146 countries;[7] 472 events in 20 sports.Rowing was added to the program.[7] 3.8 billion people throughout the world viewed the Games on television and streaming.[7] and 3.4 million spectators attended the Games.[8]
2009
IPC General Assembly reinstated athletes with an intellectual disability into the Paralympic Games.[4]
2009
IPC Position Stand – Background and Scientific Principles of Classification in Paralympic Sport passed by IPC Sports Science Committee, Classification Committee and Governing Board in June.[4][12]
2010
12–21 March –Vancouver Winter Paralympics – 502 athletes from 44 countries;[9] 64 events in 5 sports. 230,000 ticket sales, a record for the Games.[9]
IPC and IOC signed a new co-operation agreement which increased IOC financial support and guaranteed the Paralympics will be staged in the same city and venues as the Olympics until 2020.[12]
2012
IPC's revenue exceeded EUR 10 million for the first time.[12]
7–16 March –Sochi Winter Paralympics – 541 athletes from 45 countries;[9] 72 events in 6 sports. 316,200 tickets were sold, the most ever for Paralympic Winter Games.Para snowboard added to the program.[9] 316,200 ticket sales, surpassing the record from Vancouver Games.[9]
2016
7–18 September –Rio de Janeiro Summer Paralympics. The first games inLatin America andSouth AmericaPara canoe andPara triathlon added to the program. 30 November – IPC officially rebrands the 10 sports for which it serves as the international federation with the "World Para" mark. At the same time, IPC changes the names of three of these 10 sports:[13]
Paralympic shooting becomes "shooting Para sport".
Sledge hockey becomes "Para ice hockey".
Wheelchair dance sport becomes "Para dance sport".
9–18 March –PyeongChang Winter Paralympics – 569 athletes from 49 countries;[9] 80 events in 6 sports, Snowboarding has been expanded into a separate discipline for 2018, with 10 medal events (in 2014, two medal events in snowboarding were held within the alpine skiing programme). IOC and IPC, signed an agreement that renewed the partnership between the two institutions by Brisbane 2032.
However, theSalt Lake 2002 Organizing Committee (SLOC), chose to follow the practice of "one bid, one city" already at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, with oneOrganizing Committee for both Games, which was followed up by the 2004 Games in Athens and Beijing in 2008.
The agreement was adjusted in 2003. An extension was signed in June 2006.[15] A further extension was signed in 2012, valid until 2020. In March 2018, a historic long-term extension was signed establishing a partnership until 2032.
There are 17 international federations recognized by the IPC, and there are three disability specific organizations, while the IPC has served as the international federation for multiple sports.[16][17]
As of January 2025, the IPC through the World Para Sports name manages the governances for five Para sports. They are Para athletics, Para ice hockey, Para powerlifting, Para swimming and shooting Para sport.
On 30 November 2016, to distinguish them from the Paralympic Games, the IPC adopted the new blanket brandingWorld Para® Sports, with the Para sports rebranded accordingly. It also renamed three sports to align with this new name;Paralympic shooting was renamed to "shooting Para sport" (to reduce confusion withparachuting) andsledge hockey became "Para ice hockey" (for both branding and linguistic reasons). Sports contested in the Summer Paralympics began using the new branding immediately. For winter sports, whose competitive seasons had already started by the announcement, only the world championships were immediately changed to reflect the new branding; the full switchover did not occur until the 2017–18 season.[13]
In December 2021 during itsvirtual General Assembly, the IPC voted on an aspirational mandate to transfer its international governance of Para sports to independent bodies by 2026, either by transferring them to an existing governing body, or spinning off subcommittees as independent federations. A governance review published in October 2019 found that the IPC's governance "created perceptions of conflict of interest, disparity in the application of resources, a sense of unfairness between the IPC Sports and those which are not and confusion about the IPC's role, all of which is impacting its reputation."[18][19]
Supervises and co-ordinates theWorld Para Ice Hockey Championships and other competitions. With the November 2016 rebranding, the official name of the sport was changed from "sledge hockey" to "Para ice hockey". This change was made upon the request of the sport's community, partly due to the word "sledge" having different meanings across languages.[13]