The Paralympic Movement

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement; it organises the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games; and also serves as the International Federation for 12 sports, for which it supervises and co-ordinates the World Championships and other competitions.

The IPC is an international non-profit organisation formed and run by 162 National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) from five regions and four disability specific international sports federations (IOSDs).

The four IOSDs are:

• CP-ISRA: Cerebral Palsy International Sport and Recreation Association
• IBSA: International Blind Sports Federation
• INAS-FID: International Sports Federation for Persons with Intellectual Disability
• IWAS: International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation

Whereas other international sports organisations for athletes with a disability are either limited to one disability group or to one specific sport, the IPC - as an umbrella organisation - represents several sports and disabilities. The national sports organisations, which created the IPC, are convinced that the future of sport for people with a disability or disabled people lies in bringing together athletes with different abilities to hold joint competitions.