Blog #7
At first glance, allowing any athlete with a disability to compete in all sports may seem very inclusive, but it raises serious concerns about fairness. Organized by the International Paralympic Committee, the goal of Paralympic sports is to ensure fair competition, not just to include everyone. Things could easily become unbalanced if every athlete could participate in any activity regardless of how their disability affects them. Classification helps keep things structured and fair. According to the International Paralympic Committee, “Prior to the start of the 21st century, there were no agreed unifying principles to guide the establishment and development of Para sport classification systems” (2026). It wasn’t until 2007 that the IPC Governing Board “led to the adoption of the first edition of the Classification Code” (International Paralympic Committee, 2026). Due to classification, athletes are categorized based on how their specific disability affects their performance in a parti...