Photo credit- Royal Moroccan Federation for Disability Sport

Eligibility Workshop Hosted By Virtus At World Para Athletics Grand Prix, Marrakech

/in , /by

Virtus Academy delivered an Eligibility Workshop at Marrakech on the 8th and 9th of March. The workshop was conducted alongside the World Para-Athletics Grand Prix hosted in Marrakech and was organized by the Royal Moroccan Federation for Disability Sport.

The workshop was led by the Head of Eligibility Prof Jan Burns MBE and Virtus Academy Manager Dr Debbie Van Biesen. The workshop comprised an introduction to eligibility and classification.

“It was a privilege to meet and work with the participants from Morocco, Slovenia and Malaysia. The participants showed excellent enthusiasm and commitment to the inclusion of II athletes. I’m sure this will lead to increased opportunities for Virtus athletes,” said prof. Jan Burns, Head of Eligibility of Virtus.

The workshop was attended by 11 participants in total who are national and international clinical psychologists and sports practitioners. All participants successfully completed the 2 days course.

After completing the workshop, participants from Morocco expressed the federation’s readiness to collaborate with Virtus to have more Moroccan athletes on the master list and to compete in the Virtus competition.

USA coach hopes to find funding support for the team ahead of Vichy Games

/in , /by

Having athletes scattered out across a vast area presents particular challenges when managing national teams. However, Team USA proved this does not have to be a barrier to success when they became the most successful nation at the 2022 Virtus World Cross Country Championships. The event, hosted by Athletes Without Limit(AWL) in the city of San Diego saw the home team win five of the eight gold medals and ruled the podium. This was despite the fact that the team, who won both the 4km and 8km team events, mostly do not train together.

Scott Brinen, Head coach of USA Cross Country team

“They didn’t have any time together to practice. I spent time over the six months before the event having video calls with the athletes and asking them how their training is going, coming up with some sort of resources for their parents/personal coaches if they had any questions,” says Scott Brinen, head coach for the USA Cross-Country team.

Newbies like Ishaan Iyer and Ben Bluemound, teamed up with Paralympians like Mike Brannigan, Breanna Clark, and Kaitlyn Bounds to keep their national flags on top. One of those hidden heroes was Ben Bluemound who inspired everyone with his performance and contribution to the team despite suffering from a seizure just a week prior to the event. He fought through the soreness and medications to play a major role in the team’s event.

Ben Bluemound in action at the 2022 Virtus World Cross Country Championship. ©Athletes Without Limits. Picture credit: DMAC 49

“The seizure I had was apparently triggered by a fever that spiked around early November and I didn’t think I would be able to compete until the doctors cleared me. I was actually in pain in some areas of my back muscles while I was running, and I was adjusting to the new medication at a different time zone.” Ben Bluemound told Virtus.

Athletes spoke highly of each other, of the bond they created and shared over the two-day event. They thoroughly enjoyed staying together, being roommates, having meals together, practising and participating in the event together and appreciating the time which is usually missed through the lack of training camps. The primary reason behind this appears to be the lack of funding.

Brinen, who is the owner and head coach of Badger Track Club in Madison, Wisconsin and a ‘lululemon Ambassador, has been the head coach of team USA since 2019 and is working closely with AWL attempting to create connections and unify athletes across the country which has been a ‘fairly steep learning curve according to him because although the USA has a national program, getting funding support for para athletes is hard and for athletes with intellectual impairment is even harder.

“Many countries have well-funded national programs which unfortunately we (USA) don’t have, and this makes it very difficult to build a team and train it to get the results we want to achieve. All our athletes are spread across the country and I coach only a couple of them but the rest have their own personal coaches. All I can do in this situation is to kind of coordinate with their parents/personal trainers and coach them. Those nations who have national programs or regular training camps get to spend time coaching the athletes for multiple years. I don’t have that advantage. I hope people in our government  or other sponsors see what’s going on and come forward to support us.”

Scott further shared how parents are struggling to find coaches for their children whether it’s in their city or state because of the extra attention or support they need. Many parents end up training their kids themselves which puts a lot of pressure on them as they have to squeeze in the training time alongside their full-time job.

Many Virtus members worldwide face similar issues and have been making their own arrangements whether by fundraising or self-finance to fund their players for Virtus events and other championships. This certainly puts pressure on everyone to have added expenses and is even harder for those at an economic disadvantage.

“If teams like the USA are struggling for funding, we can imagine just how hard it is for some of our smaller or developing nations. I hope governments and organisations come forward to help elite athletes with an intellectual impairment to achieve their sporting dream” said Mr Marc Truffaut, President of Virtus.

P.C- Canterbury Christ Church University

Volunteers needed for Anti-doping research project

/in , /by

Researchers from Canterbury Christ Church University in Great Britain and KU Leuven University in Belgium have partnered together to understand the experience of athletes with intellectual impairment in anti-doping and drug testing. The research project is funded by the World Anti-Doping Agency. This study is among the first to provide recommendations and guidance to international and national sports and anti-doping organisations on how to best support athletes with an intellectual impairment. Dr Philip Hurst from Canterbury Christ Church University along with Virtus Eligibility Head- Professor Jan Burns and Virtus Academy Manager Dr Debbie Van Biesen will be working closely on this project.

Interested volunteers will be invited to attend a focus group interview with other athletes with intellectual impairments and parents/guardians/coaches. During the interviews, questions will be asked related to experiences of anti-doping, such as education sessions, drug testing and what can be done to help improve these practices for athletes with an intellectual impairment. Information provided will be kept strictly confidential and anonymous, whereby none of the information provided will be passed on to others.

Who can participate?

Both athletes with intellectual impairment and those who support them, such as their parents, guardians or coaches are eligible to participate in the study.

Athletes will need to:

  1. Have competed in an event that is compliant with the World Anti-Doping Agency.
  2. Be registered to compete with VIRTUS (the International Sports Federation for athletes with an intellectual
    impairment).
  3. Be aged 16 or older.
  4. Attended an anti-doping education session or have been drug tested in sport.

If you are unsure of whether you fulfil the criteria outlined above, do not hesitate to contact the lead researcher, Dr Philip Hurst, at Philip.hurst@canterbury.ac.uk.

Virtus signs MOU with World Baseball Softball Confederation

/in , /by

Virtus – the International Sports Federation for Athletes with an Intellectual Impairment is delighted to announce that Virtus has signed the MOU with World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC).  

Virtus and WBSC will now join forces and work towards the development and implementation of strategies and programmes to grow Baseball and Softball for people with an intellectual impairment.  

Following this collaboration, the WBSC will now introduce a new intellectual impairment class as part of future Championships where possible to promote the inclusion of players with an intellectual impairment at World, Regional, National, and other competitions.  

Virtus Executive Director Nick Parr, who will also be part of the Paralympic commission of WBSC which will oversee the activities said,

 “Virtus is really pleased to embark on this new partnership with WBSC to grow baseball/softball for players with an intellectual impairment. We work closely with a number of International Sports Federations and this latest agreement represents an exciting new opportunity for us. ”  

The WBSC Paralympic Commission listed the creation of a Baseball5 version for athletes with an intellectual impairment as one of the priorities among the objectives of the Strategic Plan 2022-2028.

“This MOU with VIRTUS marks a significant step in the WBSC’s continuous effort to grow baseball and softball and increase accessibility to our sport,” commented WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari. 

“We are committed to seeking recognition by the IPC and have baseball/softball a sport on the programme of the Paralympic Games by Brisbane 2032″, he added. 

With the addition of the WBSC, it will be the sixth International federation, including World Karate Federation, World Sailing, World Taekwondo, European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA) and Confédération Internationale Francophone Sport Adapté Culture (CIFSAC), with whom Virtus has partnerships to grow sports for athletes with an intellectual impairment. 

USA dominate medals at Cross Country in San Diego 2022

/in , /by

After two days of rigorous competition, the 2022 Virtus World Cross Country Championship concluded on Sunday in San Diego, USA. Both long-course and short-course races were offered to the athletes to compete in. Paralympians like Michael Brannigan, Gael Geofrey and Breanna Clark made their way to the championship.

The championship turned out to be of huge success for the host nation, claiming five out of the eight golds from the championship and topping the medal tally.

Winners of Men’s II1 long and short course race. (From left) Adam Angalone, Michael Brannigan and Gael Geoffrey. Picture Credit- Bob Bettancourt

In the II1 category, Paralympian Michael Brannigan (USA) became the host nation’s superstar by winning three golds in 8K long course, 4k short course and overall Men’s team event alongside team mates Adam Angelone, Benjamin Bluemond, Tyler Wingington, Tae Sebastian, Kenneth Noguchi and Ishaan Ramanathan Eye.

Although Spain came second in the Men’s 4K teams event, the team defeated the host nation in the long course 8K event adding gold to their medal tally. The team consist of Adrián Parras Álvarez, Jose Martínez Moron, Raúl Martínez Garri, Ibai Magdaleno Pala and Jesús Fernández Pére.

Gael Geoffrey from France, who competed in 1500m at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, finished third in both the long course and short course. He was also part of the French team who won the bronze in the Men’s team event.

Winners for II1 Women’s long and short course race. (From left) Franziska Dziallas (GER), Kaitlyn Bounds (USA) and Aleksandra Gustaffson (SWE). Picture credit- Bob Bettancourt

In the Women’s short course race, Kaitlyn Bounds from the host nation won the gold (7:34sec) by defeating Franziska Dziallas from Germany (7:51sec). Sweden’s Aleksandra Gustaffson settled for the bronze. The podium finish was repeated by the American, German and Swedish runners in the exact same sequence in the long course.

Two-time Paralympic Champion in 400m Breanna Clark who tried her luck in Cross country for the first time finished fourth in the short course race.

Jason David from France. Picture credit- Bob Bettancourt

In the Men’s II2 category, Jason David from France became the first athlete ever to participate in a cross-country competition. He was the sole participant in both short and long-course events in the men’s category in II2.

Full results are available here.

Tennis to be endorsed by ITF at Global Games 2023

/in , /by

Virtus, the International Sports Federation for Athletes with Intellectual Impairment is delighted to announce that the Tennis competition at the 2023 Virtus Global Games, in Vichy from 4th to 10th June, will be endorsed by the International Tennis Federation.

“I am so pleased that the ITF continues to endorse the Virtus tennis competitions and the Global Games 2023 in Vichy, France. Their support and recognition of our tennis programme enhances the competitions we provide for our very talented athletes” said Lesley Whitehead, Virtus Tennis director.

After the 2019 Global Games in Brisbane, it is the second time that the ITF has recognised the Virtus Global Games. Marc Truffaut, Virtus President and President of Fédération Française du Sport Adapté – FFSA is also excited to see the continued partnership between Virtus and ITF.

 “We are absolutely delighted to receive the backing of the ITF for the second time. It will be an excellent recognition for the outstanding players who will compete in Vichy in June 2023.”

The 2023 Virtus Global Games are happening from 4th to 10th June 2023 in Vichy, France. The multi-sport event will offer competition across twelve sports- Athletics, Swimming, Table Tennis, Basketball, Futsal, Track and Road Cycling, Horse riding, Water and Indoor rowing, Judo, Karate and Taekwondo, along with two demonstration sports- Handball and Indoor Hockey.

More information about the Virtus Global Games can be found at the official website or at 2023 Virtus Global Games. Entries for 2023 are currently open.

Kim Gi Tae steals the show at Andalucia WPTTC 2022

/in , /by

The 2022 World Para Table Tennis Championship took place in Granada, Spain between 6th and 12th of November.

A total of 32 athletes with intellectual impairment, 16 men and 16 women took part in the competition in the Class 11 category. Players who attracted the greatest attention were the returning Paralympic Champions. However, major casualties occurred in both men’s and women’s matches where many Tokyo2020 medallists failed to progress to the semi-finals.

Australia’s Samuel Von Einem was beaten by Kim Chang Gi by 3-2 in the first round whilst in the quarterfinals, Hungary’s Peter Palos lost to Kim Gi Tae from South Korea 3-0, and Cuesta Eduardo from Spain took down Lucas Creange (FRA) 3-2.

Kim Gi Tae (S.KOR) in action. Picture Credit- ITTF

From not qualifying to the semi-finals at the Paralympic Games last year to becoming the World no.1, South Korea’s Kim Gi Tae made quite a comeback. He emerged as the most successful player of the championship, securing gold in all three possible events – men’s singles, men’s doubles, mixed doubles – the only player to achieve the feat.

In Men’s singles, Gi Tae overpowered Kim Chang and claimed the championship title by 3-0 (11-7,11-7,11-3) whilst in the doubles he and partner Jeong Kyuyoung grabbed the top spot on the podium by 3-0 win over Japan’s Takes Takemori and Kate Koya. Zhao Antoine and Ivaldi Timothe from France settled for the Bronze.

In Mixed doubles, once again South Korea dominated everyone. Kim Gi Tae and Seo Yang Hee (S.Korea) won the Gold by beating Japanese team (Asian Takashi/Furukawa Kanami) and French players Lea ferney and Lucas Creange settled for Bronze.

In the Women’s section, beating Maki Ito from Japan by 3-0, French superstar Lea Ferney secured herself a spot in the finals. Meanwhile, Polish player Lysiak Krystyna ended the hopes of Nowacka Dorota (POL) and entered the finals by 3-0.

In the finals, determined to win the championship, Tokyo 2020 silver medalist from France crushed her Polish opponent Lysiak Krystyna by 3-0.

Lea Ferney smashing in the finals. Picture Credit- ITTF

“I am glad to win the Gold. I started at 3rd rank and I am the first now, its a great feeling. Me and my coach prepared strategies before the competition and watched videos, and tried to do as we decided. This competition was great.” said Lea Ferney.

In Women’s doubles, Hong Kong’s NG Mui Wiu and Wong Ting Ting, defeated Lea Ferney and Anne Divet by 3-0. Turkey and Poland grabbed the final spot on the podium.

Full results can be accessed from ITTF Website.

Hong Kong players ruled the Badminton court

/in , /by

On the final day of the 2022 Virtus OA Games, a lot of actions were coming from the Badminton courts at the Chandler Theatre where the final matches were being played.

Hong Kong made a strong impression and won three out of four medal events.

In the II1 Women’s singles, Emma Mangan (AUS) was smashed by Ally France Yuet Yeung (HKN) by 21-12 and 21-8.

Men’s Doubles team on the podium (team AUS on the left and team Hong Kong on right) P.C- Hong Kong Sports Association for Persons with Intellectual Disability

Men’s and Women’s double matches too were won by Hong Kong. Pat Kui Tam and Chi Shing Wong (HKG) stayed undefeated by Australia’s Alex baker and Timothy Gould with a score of 21-5 and 21-11 in the Men’s category.

Talking to the reporters of the OA Games, Alex baker shared how important this event was for him-

“I have always wanted to play sport for Australia and the OA Games have been absolutely amazing, to play in your home country or home state against some of the world’s best. It has been absolutely phenomenal.”

On the other hand, in the Women’s category, Emma Mangan and Sabrina Weier from Australia did manage to put on some struggle against Tsz Ying Luk and Ally Grace Yuet Yeung, they had to taste defeat by 21-16 and 21-14.

Meanwhile, in Men’s II1 class, Rintaro Nagano from Japan interrupted Hong Kong’s reign and thrashed Chi Shing Wong with an astounding score lead of 21-3 and 21-4.

Athletes were pleased with their first International Virtus competition.

 “It’s a very fun tournament because you can you can interact with athletes from various countries,” said Rintaro.

Full match stats are available on Badminton Australia’s website.

Watch the highlights from the semi-final matches.

Japan shine in both swimming and table tennis

/in , /by

While Australia continues to stay on top of the medal tally, Japan yet again proved that it is the powerhouse when it comes to shattering records. They also took two out of three Golds in table tennis.

Swimming

On day-4 of the ongoing 2022 Virtus OA Games, the hungry Japanese relay teams shattered two more Virtus World Records today in the 4x50m medley relay in both men’s and women’s II1 categories. The men’s team consisting of Saito Masaki, Yamaguchi Naohide, Matsuda Anku and Kagose Rei broke the previous record of 1:53.76sec by timing 1:52.20sec. On the other hand, the women’s team of Fukui Kasumi, Serizawa Mikita, Inoue Mama and Kinoshita Aira clocked a new Virtus record time of 2:11.06sec.

In the same event, Australia also broke the Oceania record with 2:16.03sec which was set in 2019. Thompson Kale, Bruzzese Stephanie, Younes Yasmine-Bella and Lucy Jade were swimming for Australia in this race who added silver to Australia’s tally.

In II1 Women’s 200m Freestyle, Aira Kinoshita from Japan broke Asia’s record twice today. Clocking a time of 2:13.70sec, she broke it first in the prelims and later in the finals, she set the new record for 2:11.16sec.

In Women’s 50m Butterfly, Yui Lam Chan from Hong Kong had it all prepared to break her own Virtus record which she set in 2019. While she managed to succeed in her plan by timing 30.25sec, 00.17sec lesser than her previous record time, Corry Taylor (AUS)snatched away the Gold medal from Yui Lam along with the Virtus World Record with a time of 30.06.

Wai Lok Tang from Honk-Kong created a new Asia’s record in II1 Men’s 50m Breaststroke with 31.81sec.

Full swimming results can be accessed here.

Table Tennis

It was yet another exhilarating day at the  Sleeman Sports Complex where the finals of II1 doubles matches were staged.

Japan and Hong Kong made their way into the finals by beating Chinese Taipei and Macau by 3-2 and 3-0 respectively.

The finals couldn’t be more thrilling. Honk kong won the first two sets with a huge lead of 11-4 and 11-9 pushing the Japanese team into the third and deciding set. With tremendous pressure of winning the set to stay in the game, the Japanese team brought their A-game and dragged the third set to deciding points and dramatically won it by 14-12, after which there was no turning back. Miya Yamaguchi and Kawasaki Ayumi (JPN) kept on returning smashes across the table and won the next two sets by 11-4 and 11-7, winning the finals by 3-2 over Wong Put Key and Wong Ka Man from Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, Li Lydia Yi-Ya and Li Jing Shaun from Chinese Taipei had a smooth win over Japan’s Wada Natsuki and Ota Ayumi with a score of 13-11, 13,11 and 11-7.

In II1 Men’s doubles, Japan took a head start by winning the first two sets by 11-9, 11-6 against Chinese Taipei. However, winning the third set by 11-9, Chen Po Yen and Hseieh Fei from Chinese Taipei kept their position steady in the match. In the fourth match, Yamamoto Shunta and Hara Hajime started playing aggressively to which the Chinese Taipei team had no defence and lost the Gold to Japan by 11-9. Indonesia and Hong kong took the final podium spot.

In the mixed doubles, Shunta Yamamoto paired up with Wada Natsuki for Japan and played against their fellow countrymates Hara anime and Yamaguchi Miya. While Yamamoto and Wada won the first match by 11-9, Hara and Yamaguchi won the next matches by 11-5, 11-9 and went a step closer to the Gold. Winning the next match, Yamamoto and Wada pushed Chinese Taipei into the deciding match. Both the teams gave tough competition to each other and pushed the final set beyond typical match points but Hara and Yamaguchi couldn’t shake the determined mood of Yamamoto and Wada and lost the final set by 14-12. Chinese Taipei’s Chen Po Yen and Li Jing Shiuan and Japan’s Yoshikawa Aoto and Kawasaki Ayumi settled for Bronze.

Full match stats can be accessed from the ITTF website.

Here are some actions from the doubles matches played today.

Highlight stories from Day-3 of 2022 Oceania Asia Games

/in , /by

Day-3 of the OA Games was another successful day with many records broken and winners being crowned in Basketball and Table Tennis final matches.

SWIMMING

Swimmers heated up the Sleeman Swimming Centre once again today and smashed four more records.

Interesting race was staged in the Women’s II1 50m Freestyle as two records were broken simultaneously in this event. Madeleine McTernan (AUS) was leading the race from the beginning but she faced a tough competition from Karl Thompson from Australia for the Gold medal. However, Madeleine had a strong finish, securing not only the Gold medal for her, but she also set a new Oceania record 28.56 sec. The race was equally important for Kasumi Fukui from Japan who broke the Asia record with a time of 29.07sec and won a bronze for her country.

In another crazy race, two more records were broken in the same event. While Joshua Alford from Australia set a new Oceania record by winning the Gold, Hon Yin Wong  from Hong Kong set a new Asia Record by clocking a time of 9:03.26sec and 9:08.15sec respectively in Men’s II1 800m Freestyle.

Full results is available here.

TABLE TENNIS

In Women’s II1 finals, Li Tung Hiu from Hong Kong succumbed to her opponent Yamaguchi Miya from Japan. Miya had a smooth win over Tung with 3-0 set points. Miya was leading from the very beginning and continued to put the pressure on her opponent Li until she took her out completely by 11-3, 11-1 and 11-4 set points.

In Men’s II1 finals, Chinese Taipei’s Chen Yen Po thrashed Hara Hajime from Japan by 11-7, 11-8 and 11-7 set points. Although Hajime tried to recover from his defeat in the second set but Chen stayed undefeated and won three sets straightaway, adding another Gold to Japan’s basket.

“I am very happy that I represented my country” said Chen Yen Po

In Men’s Doubles, Japan will play against Indonesia while Chinese Taipei will face Hong Kong in the Semifinals matches tomorrow.

Four quarterfinal matches will be played tomorrow between: Hong Kong vs Macau, Japan vs Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong vs Japan and Chinese Taipei vs Japan and it will be thrilling to see who can make it into the semi-finals.

Results can be accessed from ITTF website.

BASKETBALL

Audience were presented with quite a few exciting basketball matches at the Chandler Arena (Sleeman Sports Complex).

In Men’s II1, host nation defeated Japan with a score of 82-59. Although the Japanese team lost the finals, they showed true sportsmanspirit and gave their best.

“We have been preparing for this match for over a year now and it was fun to play” said Watanabe Ryo from Japan

Full match stats can be accessed from Queensland Australia’s website. 

Here are some magic moments from day-3.