Our partners at World Sailing have published the Para Sailing World Championship Notice of Race and entries are now invited from eligible sailors in any country.

The Para Sailing World Championship will be held at the Southport Yacht Club on the Gold Coast, Australia, from 5 – 11 November 2022, as part of the Virtus Oceania Asia Games 2022.

The release of the Notice of Race signals the formal invitation to sailors and demonstrates the drive towards creating opportunities for participation and competition, increasing awareness of sailing amongst athletes with intellectual impairments, and offering a supportive environment.

The World Sailing and Virtus partnership was formed with the aim of working jointly to promote the global growth of sailing amongst athletes with intellectual impairment. Together with the delivery partners – Sport Inclusion Australia and Southport Yacht Club will bring the event to life in November 2022.

For athletes who want to compete in a Sailing World Championship, this is the opportunity to set sail to Brisbane Australia. A series of informational webinars will be held to inform clubs, coaches and sailors from 10^th May 2022 on the entry and eligibility requirements.

The following organisations should be acknowledged for their collaboration to bring this major international event to the shores of the Gold Coast.

• World Sailing – the International Federation for Sailing
• Southport Yacht Club – the Organising Authority and host venue
• Sport Inclusion Australia – the organisation delivering the Virtus Oceania Asia Games 2022
• Virtus – the International Federation for Athletes with Intellectual Impairments

Information on the webinars and to download the Notice of Race will be available on:

Organising Authority Southport Yacht Club website

OA Games 2022 website

To register for an information webinar contact [email protected]

The bid process to identify the host of the 7th Virtus Global Games, to be held in 2027, have been declared open. Simultaneously, the search to find the hosts of the 2026 Regional Games in Americas and Asia/Oceania also began.

With a little more than a year to go to the 2023 Virtus Global Games in Vichy – France, the Games Committee opened the bid process with the aim to announce the winning bid during the closing ceremony in France.

Virtus General Secretary and Games Committee Chairperson, Mr. Barry Holman said, “We are excited to receive bids for the 2027 Virtus Global Games. The Global Games showcase the courage, character, excellence and integrity of the more than 1000 athletes from over 50 countries we expect to gather for competition in 2027. We welcome all bids and stand ready to assist bidders in the process.”

The Virtus Global Games are the pinnacle event for the elite athletes with an intellectual impairment and is conducted every four years, in the preceding year the Paralympics. The 2027 Global Games will be the seventh edition of the games, the first one being held in Bollnas, Sweden, in 2004.

The Virtus Regional Games are a new addition to the Virtus calendar in recent years, and create a pathway to the Global Games. Many athletes have made their major debut at the Global Games and have gone on to winning Paralympic medals.

The 2027 Virtus Global Games will provide an international platform for elite athletes with an intellectual impairment on the journey to LA2028.

Interested Virtus Member Organisations have until 30th June to submit their expression of interest, with full bids being due by 28th February 2023, whilst bids for Regional Games are due no later than 30th November 2022.

Details of the bid process and event specification can be found here.

Virtus Australian member- Sport Inclusion Australia (SIA) has signed a partnership with Brisbane City Council  to deliver the 2022 Virtus Oceania-Asia Games, which will build a legacy of inclusivity, diversity and accessibility in the world of sport and in the host city, Brisbane. In addition, SIA has also successfully secured funding from the Australian Government. Previously, the Brisbane City Council and the Australian government supported the 2019 Virtus Global Games in Brisbane- the world’s largest sporting event for elite athletes with intellectual impairment, and continues to demonstrate the same support and commitment to the delivery of 2022 Virtus OA Games.

“I am confident that the partnership between Council and Sport Inclusion Australia will lead to positive outcomes for both organisations and more importantly, bring together our city and community in the spirit of sport for all.” – Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner.

Earlier in February, the Australian Minister of Sport- Richard Colbeck announced Government investment of almost $2 million, which will aid Sport Inclusion Australia to host upto 1000 international athletes and officials at the upcoming Virtus Oceania/Asia Regional Games in less than 8 months from now.

Senator Richard Colbeck said, “OA Games 2022 will build on the success of GG2019 Brisbane Games and raise awareness of inclusive sport to a new level, with a clear focus on engagement and participation of our Pacific neighbours, as we head to the 2032 summer Paralympics in Brisbane.”  

“Australia keeps attracting major sporting events because of our well-justified reputation as an excellent host of world class international sporting competitions. The OA Games 2022 is a great addition to the huge line-up of major competitions ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games”. Minister Colbeck said.

At a time when sport for athletes with an intellectual impairment is losing funding in many nations due to the consequences of the global pandemic, this is an historical achievement for Virtus member Sport Inclusion Australia and testament to the fantastic example of how government,  NGOs,  and sport  can work together to create opportunity for people with an intellectual impairments and to showcase their talent. 

Virtus Vice-President and CEO of SIA- Robyn Smith expressed how the Games marks an important opportunity to showcase the abilities of those who live with an intellectual impairment. 

“With an estimated 2 to 3 percent of the world’s population having an intellectual impairment, the OA Games highlights the immense ability of the athletes and the power of sport to change attitudes, challenge perceptions, and strengthen communities locally and globally” Ms Smith said.

The 2022 Virtus OA Games are all set to be staged in Brisbane from 5-11 November. Around 1000 participants from over 25 nations across the Asia and the Pacific region are expected to participate in the inaugural Regional Games.  OA Games is a multi-sport event including international sanctioning and classification for athletics, swimming, table tennis, leading to the Vichy 2023 Global Games and the summer Paralympic Paris 2024. In addition, it will also host the World Para Sailing Championship for the first time.

Find out more about OAGames Facebook page  and Sport Inclusion Australia here.

We are delighted to announce that Virtus has been awarded the Erasmus+ Sport funding for the IDEAL 2.0 project. The grant has been secured for the next three years. This is the second time for Virtus to be partner in the award-winning consortium. Earlier, Virtus had received the Erasmus+ grant in 2017 and was one of the proud partners in the successful IDEAL project. The resources for coaches generated through that project have contributed to the launch of Virtus Academy, which is a global hub for research, training, and education of elite ID-sport. 

Building upon the outcomes of the first IDEAL project, and considering the COVID-19 situation, a new consortium was built to address the needs and priorities in the field of Inclusive and Equitable sport. The IDEAL 2.0 will be coordinated by KU Leuven in Belgium, in collaboration with four other research institutions (Miguel Hernandez University of Elche in Spain, Reykjavik University in Iceland, Jozef Piludski University of Physical Education of Warsaw in Poland, and Dublin City University in Ireland). 

IDEAL 2.0 stands for “Inclusive and Equitable sport for people with Intellectual disability (ID) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)”. IDEAL stands for: 

Include (create awareness within society about Inclusivity in sport),  

Develop (translate Evidence-based practices successfully to sport professionals), 

Educate (teach coaches and support staff on how to organize adapted sport training), 

Activate (address the relevant social-determinants of inactivity) and 

Lead (foster leadership and personal development skills of our athletes)

Virtus’ role in the project is to contribute to the development of coaching resources and raising awareness about the high-level achievements of athletes with ID. Virtus is in a unique position being able to connect with athletes and coaches worldwide, as the world intellectual impairment sport organisation.  

Dr. Debbie Van Biesen, Virtus Academy Manager says, “IDEAL 2.0 is a groundbreaking and innovative project. With Virtus involved as one of the partners in this ambitious project, all Virtus members, athletes and coaches will benefit from exposure to evidence-based examples of good practice. Virtus will contribute to create a future sport policy promoting sport in a fully inclusive and equitable way.”  Dr. Debbie is also working as a Post Doctoral researcher at KU Leuven, who will be working actively in the IDEAL 2.0 project.

Being active is a public health priority focus, but having ID and/or ASD is related to lower PA levels, increased sedentariness, and an associated increased risk of health problems (e.g., diabetes, obesity), and low physical fitness. In addition, in many countries, majority of young people with intellectual disability (ID) and/or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have fewer opportunities to become physically active or to access sport which is a harsh reality. Moreover, the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has caused further restriction to the PA routines of the marginalized population of youth with ID/ASD, exacerbating the physical and mental disparities they experience. 

The IDEAL project is going to instigate the changes in the society towards a more inclusive world, especially those with intellectual impairments and/or autism. The overall goal of the IDEAL 2.0 project is to facilitate equitable and inclusive access to sport and PA for young people with ID/ASD. In an IDEAL world, everyone has the right to participate on an equal basis with others in society, including in physical activity (PA) and sport.