Virtus is the International Federation for basketball for athletes with an intellectual impairment.
There is an established 5×5 programme, and a recently introduced 3×3 competition to promote the growth of the women’s game.
World and regional Championships are held every four years.
Players interested in competing at a high level first need to contact their National Member Organisation.
The sport is managed by the Virtus Basketball Committee.
History
The first World Championships were held in Greece in 1994, and the first European Championships in Poland in 1999. Basketball was also included when sports for athletes with intellectual impairments made their official debut at the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games. However, the sport was taken off the Paralympic programme for 2004.
Whilst basketball has not made its way back onto the Paralympic programme, it is still a popular sport within Virtus and features at the Virtus Global Games which is held every four years.
A list of upcoming events can be found here.
Rules And Regulations
Basketball for athletes with an intellectual impairment is run according to the rules of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) with modifications made by Virtus. These include coaches being allowed to sit courtside during 3×3 competition, and the shot clock running for 12 seconds.
The full sport specification for can be found here (Section 7).
Results
All results from all world and regional basketball Championships since 1994 until the present day are available here.
Basketball Rankings
Basketball Committee
- Chairperson – Tony Guihot (AUS)
- Americas – Emma De La Garcia (MEX)
- Asia – Naoke Ogowa (JPN)
- Europe – Richard Magnette (FRA)
- Oceania – Simon Robinson (AUS)
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Reece Dunn- The Golden boy from Tokyo 2020 Paralympics
Reece Dunn is an athlete with an intellectual Impairment from Great Britain. He won 3 Gold, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and emerged as the most decorated athlete with an Intellectual Impairment. He was also the most successful British athlete. -
Presentation of the Virtus para equestrian video competition 2021 (senior section)
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Presentation of the Virtus para equestrian video competition 2021 (youth section)
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Breanna Clarke (USA) Gold Medallist Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games
Breanna Clarke (USA) Gold Medallist Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games 400m (T20) shares her Games experience. -
MakingInvisibleVISIBLE - Celebrating Tokyo 2020 Paralympians in Intellectual Impairment class events
The Paralympians who competed at Tokyo2020 in Athletics, Swimming, and Table Tennis in the intellectual impairment class events. 63 Medals. 120 Athletes. You shine like stars!
Photo credit: OIS Photos -
Athletes with Intellectual Impairment at Tokyo2020 Paralympic Games
At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, athletes with intellectual impairments competed in 22 medal events across Athletics, Swimming, and Table Tennis. This is a short highlights reel of some of the images from Tokyo2020, thanks to OISPhotos and ITTF. -
Todd "the HULK" Hodgetts
Before leaving Tokyo, Todd the Hulk shared with Virtus some of his thoughts.
Tokyo will be Todd's third consecutive Paralympic Games, the most any Australian athlete with an intellectual impairment has ever competed at. -
Virtus - Our place in the human race
Across the world, there are between 156-250 million people who live with a disability that is not visible. Source: WHO Report on Disability 2011.
Intellectual Impairment knows no boundaries. It cuts across the lines of racial, ethnic, educational, social, and economic backgrounds, and it can occur in any family.
There is a solution - SPORTS.
Virtus: World Intellectual Impairment Sport for 35 years has been on a mission to drive the development of elite sport worldwide for athletes with an intellectual impairment. But, like our athletes, Virtus has been invisible, mainly making a visible global impact every four years during the Global Games, which qualifies some ID athletes to compete at Paralympics in Athletics, Swimming, and Table Tennis only.
It's our time, to balance the scales and see millions of people have opportunities and access to sport, advocate for more inclusion of athletes and sports, and change the world for athletes with ID.
Virtus World Intellectual Impairment Sport, “Virtus” is the brand name of the International Federation for athletes with intellectual impairment and is a founding member of the International Paralympic Committee. Registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation in the UK (1173901)