Paraclimbing

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Paraclimbing is competitive climbing for athletes with disabilities.

Contents

The classification system defines who is eligible to compete in paraclimbing and groups athletes with eligible impairments into sports classes. Athletes are placed into a sport class based on how much their impairment affects their ability to carry out the fundamental activities in paraclimbing. [1]

Sports classification for competitions differentiates paraclimbing from adaptive climbing in general.

History

The IFSC has been hosting paraclimbing competitions since the first international event in 2006 in Ekaterinburg, Russia. The sport grew, and a regular circuit was added to the IFSC calendar from 2010. IFSC Paraclimbing World Championships have taken place since 2011. The IFSC Paraclimbing World Championships run alongside the IFSC Climbing World Championships, promoting para athletes on the same stage as other athletes. [2] [3]

In January 2017 the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) granted the IFSC the status of "Recognised International Federation". [4]

Development

In October 2018 the IFSC announced a plan for developing paralimbing. [2] The IFSC Strategic Plan 2020–2028 includes plans to "professionalise paraclimbing to meet IPC standards and aim at its inclusion in future Paralympic Games editions, starting from Los Angeles 2028." [5]

In 2023 three Paraclimbing World Cups (Innsbruck in Austria, Swiss venue Villars and an unspecified location in the United States) and the World Championships [6] (Bern, Switzerland) are planned. [7]

Competition formats

In competition climbing, there are three climbing formats: lead, speed, and boulder. Lead is the dominant format. [8]

In competitions ranking is based on the furthest reached height while climbing. Competitors try unknown routes until they fall. If rankings are the same, previous round results or time is used to rank the athletes. [8]

Participation and classification

A wide range of different people take part in Paraclimbing, including visually impaired climbers, climbers with limb differences [9] and those with brain injuries or mobility impairments. [10] [11] Higher numbers equate to higher functionality (less impairment), lower numbers equate to lower functionality (more impairment). [12]

Paraclimbing categories according to the 2024 IFSC regulations [13]
CategoryCriteriaExample image
Visual impairmentB1 Visual acuity is poorer than LogMAR 2.60 (blindness) Climbing World Championships 2018 Paraclimbing visual impairment B1 (BT0A5679).jpg
B2LogMAR of 1.50 − 2.60 and/or visual field of less than 10°
B3LogMAR of 1 − 1.40 (20/200 − 20/500 on the Snellen chart) and/or visual field of less than 40°
Upper limb(s)AU2One upper limb has reduced function below the athletes elbow and does not have a

functional wrist joint

 Climbing World Championships 2018 Paraclimbing AU-2 (BT0A7518).jpg
AU3One hand or multiple digits across both hands are absent or have reduced function
Lower limb(s)AL1Significantly reduced functional use for climbing or absence of bilateral lower limbs Climbing World Championships 2018 Paraclimbing AL-2 (BT0A5495).jpg
AL2Impairment in a single lower limb or leg length difference
Range and powerRP1Impairment across all eligible impairment types with severe impairment to function affecting at least 2 limbs or a single upper limb is absent or has severely limited functional use Climbing World Championships 2018 Paraclimbing RP3 (BT0A5218).jpg
RP2Impairment across all eligible impairment types with moderate impairment to function affecting the trunk and/or limbs
RP3Impairment across all eligible impairment types with mild impairment to function affecting the trunk and/or limbs

In the 2022-2023 season AU1 was permanently combined with RP1, and a new category of upper arm limb difference was added. AU3 is the designated sport class for athletes with limb differences between the wrist and tips of the fingers. With a minimum impairment of a loss of 6 finger joints across both hands. Prior to the creation of this sport class many AU3 athletes classified in RP3.

Before an official IFSC event (World Cup or World Championships), there is an evaluation session for those who require classification. During this evaluation session, classifiers test the Para-athlete to determine the correct sport class for them. Medical documentation is checked by the classifiers in advance.

Merging

Merging order of paraclimbing categories Paraclimbing Merging Chart.svg
Merging order of paraclimbing categories

If there is an insufficient number of competitors in a given category, this category can be merged into another, 'harder' category. In world championships at least six athletes from four countries must compete in each category, while world cups require four athletes from three countries. Merges may be performed sequentially until the required number of competitors is met. [13]

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References

  1. ↑ "Classification in Para sport". Paralympics New Zealand. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  2. 1 2 "Paraclimbing". www.ifsc-climbing.org. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  3. ↑ DiNunzio, Jeff (2014-08-19). "A Group Lifts Paraclimbers to Higher Goals". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  4. ↑ "The IPC Governing Board concludes three days of meetings in Bonn". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  5. ↑ "IFSC UNVEILS 2020–2028 STRATEGIC PLAN". www.ifsc-climbing.org. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  6. ↑ "IFSC Climbing World Championships 2023 Bern". Climbing- und Paraclimbing-WM Bern 2023. 2022-02-22. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  7. ↑ "IFSC to hold three Paraclimbing World Cup events in 2023 including one in US". www.insidethegames.biz. 2022-09-14. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  8. 1 2 "What is Paraclimbing?". Paraclimbing News. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  9. ↑ "World champs to be valuable experience for climber". NZ Herald. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  10. ↑ "ARTICLE: The Rise of the UK Paraclimbing Community". www.ukclimbing.com. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  11. ↑ "Hiking Mt. Whitney is tough. With a spinal cord injury, it's an endless suffer-fest". Los Angeles Times. 2021-09-22. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  12. ↑ "Classification". Paraclimbing News. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  13. 1 2 "Paraclimbing routesetting guidelines - updated march 2023" (PDF). International Federation of Sport Climbing . 2023.
  14. ↑ "Paraclimbing routesetting guidelines - updated march 2023" (PDF). International Federation of Sport Climbing . 2023.
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