Para-athletics is the sport of athletics practiced by people with a disability as a parasport. The athletics events within the parasport are mostly the same as those available to able-bodied people, with two major exceptions in wheelchair racing and the club throw, which are specific to the division. Certain able-bodied events are rarely contested as para-athletic events outside deaf sport; pole vault, triple jump, hammer and the three hurdling events. The sport is known by various names, including disability athletics, disabled track and field and Paralympic athletics. Top-level competitors may be called elite athletes with disability.
Athletics has been contested at every Summer Paralympics since the first games in 1960. Men and women from all disability groups compete in the sport.
Louise Ellery is an Australian Paralympic track and field athlete, Commonwealth Games gold medalist and former world record holder in F32 Shot put for elite athletes with a disability. At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, she won a bronze medal.
The World Para Athletics Championships, known as the IPC Athletics World Championships prior to 2017, are a biennial Paralympic athletics event organized by World Para Athletics, a subcommittee of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). It features athletics events contested by athletes with physical disabilities. The first IPC Athletics World Championships were held in Berlin, Germany in 1994.
T35 is a disability sport classification for disability athletics' running competitions. It includes people who have coordination impairments such as hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis. This includes people with cerebral palsy. The classification is used at the Paralympic Games. The corresponding F35 classification includes club and discus throw, shot put, and javelin.
T52 is disability sport classification for disability athletics. People in this class have good shoulder and upper body control, but lack fine motor skills in their arms and hands. They have no or limited trunk and leg function. The class includes people with a number of different types of disabilities including spinal cord injuries. Similar classifications are T51, T53 and T54.
T53 is disability sport classification for disability athletics. The class includes people with a number of different types of disabilities including spinal cord injuries. People in this class have full use of their arms but have no or limited trunk function. Similar classifications are T51, T52, and T54. People in this class have a functional upper limbs, but limited trunk usage and limited lower limb functionality. During classification, they both undergo a bench test of muscle strength and demonstrate their skills in athletics. People in this class include Tanni Grey-Thompson (GBR), Samantha Kinghorn (GBR), Angie Ballard (AUS) and Richard Colman (AUS).
Lindsay Sutton is an Australian track and field athlete who represented Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in athletics.
Hollie Beth Arnold is a British parasport athlete competing in category F46 javelin. Although born in Grimsby, she now lives and trains in Loughborough. She represents Wales in the Commonwealth Games.
Aled Siôn Davies is a British Paralympian athlete competing mainly in category F42 throwing events. In 2012 he became the world record holder of the F42 shot put and in the 2012 Summer Paralympics he took the bronze medal in shot put and gold in the discus. In 2013 Davies took the World Championship gold in both the shot put and discus in Lyon. He won double gold in his home country at the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships in the shot put and discus. This followed his silver medal in the F42-44 discus from the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow where he represented Wales. Davies also took part in the Channel 4 TV series Celebrity SAS: Who dares wins
The 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships was the biggest track and field competition for athletes with a disability since the 2012 Summer Paralympics. It was held in Lyon, France, and lasted from 20 to 28 July. Around 1,100 athletes competed, from 94 different countries. The event was held in the Stade du Rhône located at the Parc de Parilly in Vénissieux, in Lyon Metropolis.
The 2012 IPC Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe. It was held in Stadskanaal, Netherlands and lasted from 23 to 28 June. The event was held in the Stadskanaal Stadium and was the last major European disability athletics event before the forthcoming 2012 Summer Paralympics in London. Approximately 550 athletes from 38 countries attended the games. Several countries used the Championships to finalise the remaining places for the Paralympics.
India competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7 to 18 September 2016. The nation made its official debut at the 1968 Summer Paralympics and has appeared in every edition of the Summer Paralympics since 1984. This is India's 11th appearance at the Summer Paralympics.
Lauritta Onye is a Paralympian athlete who competes in F40 classification throwing events. She competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro winning gold in the F40 shot put. Onye is also an actress, performing under the name Laury White.
The 2017 World Para Athletics Championships were a Paralympic track and field meet organized by World Para Athletics, a subcommittee of the International Paralympic Committee. It was held at London Stadium in London from 14 to 23 July 2017. It was the 8th edition of the event, the first to be held after being renamed from IPC Athletics World Championship, and featured 213 medal events.
Asmahan Boudjadar is an Algerian athlete competing in the shot put and javelin. She won the gold medal in the F33 shot put at the 2016 Summer Paralympics held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Samar Ben Koelleb is a Tunisian athlete who competes in both shot put and discus for her country. She won the silver medal in the women's F41 shot put at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, and bronze medals in both sports at the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships.
Sanela Redžić is a Bosnian disabled athlete who competes for her nation. She has won bronze medals at the IPC Athletics European and World Championships, and placed fourth in her event at the 2012 Summer Paralympics.
