The Virtus programme offers the most talented tennis players across the world a chance to play at the highest level.
Competitions are run for II1 and II2 category players with events including men’s and women’s singles, doubles, mixed doubles and men’s and women’s team competitions. Our competitions have the endorsement of the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
Players interested in competing at a high level should contact their National Federation.
More information
History
World Championships have been held since the first event in Melbourne Park, Australia in 2004. Back then, there was only representation from Poland, Czech Republic and the host nation.
The number of nations participating is growing year on year, with representation from across the world. The number of athletes continues to grow and the quality of their play is improving all the time. In the last few years, the World Championships have been held in the USA, Great Britain and France. In addition, Virtus hosts regional tennis competitions and a Global Games every four years. Following each event, a Tennis World Rankings is published.
More information about upcoming events and competitions can be found at the events page.
Rules And Regulations
Virtus tennis competitions are based upon the rules of the ITF.
The full sport specification for Virtus tennis can be found here (Section 7.11).
Results And Rankings
- Results from all competitions since 2004 can be found at the results rankings and records page.
- Virtus maintains world rankings for athletes with an intellectual impairment according to the ITF rules.
Virtus Tennis Committee
- Sport Director/Chairperson – Lesley Whitehead (Great Britain)
- Americas – vacancy
- Europe – Linda Goffings (Belgium)
- Oceania – Brenda Tierney (Australia)
- Africa – Mohamed Abdelsattar (Egypt)
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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)