Para Canoeing

Paddleability PaddleAbility is the generic name of the new program adopted by the International Canoe Federation for athletes with physical disabilities competing in canoeing.

Para Canoeing Para Canoeing is the new name adopted by the ICF to align selective canoe sprint events more closely with the Paralympic movement.

2008 was a ground-breaking year for the PaddleAbility program! The first international conference was held in Montreal, Canada. The first international competition was held in Milan, Italy. Canada included PaddleAbility races in the National Championship, for the second time. In 2009, athletes with physical disabilities competed in four full medal events at the 2009 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships for the first time!

The four events held over 200m were: K1 men 200, K1W 200, Mixed K2 200m, C2 200m.

The next step, is qualify for inclusion in the 2016 Paralympic Games by meeting the standards for inclusion set out by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). The ICF will need to increase its participation to a minimum of 24 countries from 3 continents. The ICF aims to reach this target at the world championships in Poznan, Poland, next August. A second successful event in the 2010 World Championships will move canoeing one step closer to the 2016 Paralympics.

Who can participate? PaddleAbility is for everyone no matter your disability! However, Para Canoeing is limited to a few events at this stage.

The following Para Canoeing events will be included in the program at the Oceania Open:

K1 Men 200

LTA K1 Women 200

LTA K2 Mixed 200

TA & A C2 Mixed 200

LTA & A ‘LTA’ - Legs, Trunk, Arms: Paddlers who have the use of their legs, trunk and arms. Eligible paddlers may typically be: amputee, neurological impairment equivalent to lesion at S, cerebral palsy class 8 (CPISRA)

‘TA’ - Trunk, Arms: Paddlers who have some trunk movement but are not able to propel the boat through hip rotation due to significantly weakened function of the lower limbs. Eligible paddlers may typically have a minimum disability equivalent to at least one of the following:, bilateral around knee amputation, or significantly impaired quadriceps, or, neurological impairment equivalent to a complete lesion at L3 level, or an incomplete lesion at L1, or, combination of the above such as one leg with around knee amputation and one leg with significant quadriceps impairment; or, classification by CPISRA as eligible to be in class 5.

‘A’ - Arms only: Paddlers who have no or minimal trunk function (Shoulder function only). The paddler is able to apply force predominantly using the arms and/or shoulders. Eligible paddlers may typically have a disability equivalent to at least one of the following: cerebral palsy class 4 (CPISRA); or, neurological Impairment with a complete lesion at T12 level, or an incomplete lesion at T10. How do I get involved?

The first step to getting involved is to get in touch with Oceania Open oceania@canoe.org.au and we can help you get involved with a local contact or provide you with more information. The rest is up to you!