Disability Sport Links

IPS is the international representative organisation of elite sports for athletes with disabilities. IPC organises, supervises and co-ordinates the Paralympic Games and other multi-disability competitions on elite sports level, of which the most important are world and regional championships. It is an international non-profit organisation formed and run by 160 National Paralympic Committees and 5 disability specific international sports federations.

International Blind Sports Federation

The IBSA was formed in 1981 in Paris as an international sports organization for people with various levels of vision impairment.

CPISRA: Cerebral Palsy International Sport and Recreation Association

CPISRA was founded in 1978 people with a diagnosis of cerebral palsy, cerebral vascular accident/stroke, head injury or other non-progressive brain damage resulting in locomotor impairments of either a congenital or acquired etiology.

International Wheelchair & Amputee Sports Federation

In January of 2004, the International Stoke Mandeville Wheelchair Sports Federation (ISMWSF) and the International Sports Organisation for the Disabled (ISOD) began unified operations. The organization has now announced that it will be known as the International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation (IWAS).

Comit Internationale des Sports des Sourds (CISS)

Comit Internationale des Sports des Sourds (International Committee of Sports for the Deaf) is the international sports organization for athletes who are deaf. CISS was established in 1924 in France.

Special Olympics International

Special Olympics is an international program of year-round sports training and athletic competition for more than one million children and adults with mental retardation. Special Olympics began in 1968 when Eunice Kennedy Shriver organized the First International Special Olympics Games at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois, USA.

United States

GUMBO

Games Uniting Mind and Body is an interscholastic track and field competition designed for school aged students who have physical or visual disabilities. GUMBO strives to support students with disabilities in developing active minds, self confidence, dignity, discipline, competitive spirit and comradeship. Like other competitive sporting events, GUMBO competitions offer athletes a contest with self, challenging each person to improve performance, strength, speed, endurance and coordination.

United States Cerebral Palsy Athletic Association

USCPAA is the resource that the member athlete can turn to for help in coordinating their training. Headquartered in historic Kingston, Rhode Island, USCPAA strives to enable its athletes to compete at their peak on local, regional, national, and international levels.

USA Deaf Sports Federation

Established in 1945, incorporated in 1957 Renamed in 1997 USA-DSF's mission is: To provide year-round training and athletic competition in a variety of sports at the state, regional, national, and international level for developing and elite athletes.

U.S. Association of Blind Athletes

The mission of the United States Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) is to change the attitudes about the abilities of the blind and visually impaired. Founded at 1976.

Wheelchair Sports USA

Founded in 1956 as the National Wheelchair Athletic Association, the name of the organization was changed in 1994 to Wheelchair Sports, USA, to better reflect the organization's mission and goals.

Disabled Sports USA

DS/USA was founded in 1967 by disabled Vietnam veterans. It was then called the National Amputee Skiers Association. In 1972 the National Amputee Skiers Association (NASA) was broadening its mission. No longer solely serving skiers, NASA needed a new name. They chose to call themselves the National Inconvenienced Sportsmen's Association. In 1976, NISA became the National Handicapped Sports and Recreation Association. The NHSRA name stuck until 1992 when the organization was renamed to National Handicapped Sports.

Canada

Canadian Wheelchair Sports Association (CWSA)

The Canadian Wheelchair Sports Association (CWSA) was officially formed in 1967 in Winnipeg, Manitoba as a result of the organization for the Pan-Am Games. The association's mission is "Promoting Excellence and Developing Opportunities in Wheelchair Sport". CWSA governs athletics, rugby and tennis and supports the development of archery, basketball, racquetball, shooting and swimming.

Canadian Amputee Sports Association

Canadian Cerebral Palsy Sports Association

Australia

Active Australia - Australian Sports Commission

Through a wide variety of programs, the ASC aims to provide opportunities for all Australians. ASC Mission Statement, 1994 Recognising the immense role sport has to play in providing health, social and economic benefits to the nation, the Australian Government directs its contribution to sport through a single national body - the Australian Sports Commission (ASC). The ASC carries out its task on a national scale with leadership, assistance and funding.

Resources

We strongly recommend the excellent disability sports webpages from Michigan State University

Content created by Martin Kudlacek,

Doctoral Student in APE, Texas Woman's University