Inas this week delivered a workshop for representatives from national sports organisations across Africa. The workshop was designed to help promote sport for athletes with an intellectual disability and encourage greater competition opportunities.

More than 40 delegates received presentations on topics including eligibility and classification of athletes and an overview of the Inas sport and competition programme. The event was hosted by FECASDI – the Federation Camerounaise Des Sports Pour Deficients Intellectuals – in Yaounde, Cameroon.

President, Amaury Russo thanked the delegates saying “Inas has set itself a target to grow its activities in areas such as Africa. I am delighted by the enthusiasm and ideas to promote sport for athletes with an intellectual disability, and very much hope to see out first Inas Africa Regional events taking place soon”.

The project was funded by a grant from the Agitos Foundation (set up by the International Paralympic Committee and it is hoped that through the project, Inas can establish new and sustainable links across Africa which will see more athletes with an intellectual competing in Inas and Paralympic sport. Although 120 athletes within the classification group competed at the London 2012 Paralympic Games – none represented African nations – something Inas wishes to see change in 2016.

Inas has today launched the bidding process to find the hosts of the 2019 Inas Global Games.

The Global Games are a multi-sport event for athletes with an intellectual disability and take place every four years. The 2019 event will be the 5th edition of the Games, and will follow Guayaquil, Ecuador who will host the 2015 Global Games in approximately 18 months time.

By beginning the bid process much earlier, it is hoped that nations will have much greater time to consider and prepare a bid, and much greater time for the winning host to plan and organise this prestigious event, reflecting the growing size, status and standard of the Games.

The bidding process will culminate next April when the winning host will be announced at the 2015 Inas General Assembly – enabling the winning nation to attend the 2015 Global Games in Ecuador as observers – and providing a full four-years to organise and deliver the 2019 event.

Full details about the bid process for the Games will be available on the Inas website at www.inas.org/technical/inas-global-games/ from today. Please note that any nation who is interested in bidding should submit the expression of interest no later than 30^th September 2014 and the deadline for full bids is strictly 31^st January 2015.

The Organising Committee for the 2015 Inas Global Games has announced the appointment of Sarah Price (UK) as their International Relations Officer, with immediate effect.

Sarah will assume responsibility for all communication between the Organising Committee and Inas members.

Sarah’s first language is English, but she also speaks fluent Spanish, having lived and worked in Ecuador and in Chile. She has previously worked as a translator/interpreter for Inas and is a qualified Spanish and French teacher with some knowledge of Portuguese and she holds a BA Hons degree in Spanish and Latin American Studies. Sarah has worked with young people with intellectual disabilities both in a specialist college and in employment services. She is an active, sporty person and at weekends she coaches minis rugby.

“I’m very excited about the appointment, and really looking forward to contributing to what promises to be a truly fantastic event.”

President of the Organising Committee in Guayaquil, Juan Carlos Araujo, added “I am delighted that Sarah has accepted this position. Her fluency in English and Spanish, her familiarity with Latin American culture and her knowledge of Inas together make her an invaluable addition to the Organising Committee”.

Sarah will be based in the UK and can be contacted at global.games@inas.org

Inas is looking for qualified psychologists to join its international Eligiblity Panel. The panel of volunteers works under the direction of the Inas Eligibility Committee and is responsible for assessing athlete primary eligibility applications.

For further details, please visit the vacancies page.

The Australian Open Tennis Championships began yesterday with 43 players with an intellectual disability (31 men, 12 women), including 4 entries from the USA and 2 from Japan.

The event, now in its 17th year, is sanctioned by Inas.

The Championships are attached to the Australian Open and have attracted a large number of entries with all players enjoying the good weather and great facilities. The influx of international players has been welcomed by Tennis Australia and the Australian players who are enjoying the increased profile and additional competition.

With players from several other countries expressing interest in the Championships organisers are looking forward to a greater international presence in 2015.

Players will play singles and doubles over three days with finals to be played at Melbourne Park on Saturday the 25^th of January.

Following the Championships there will be a match between Australia and the USA in Benalla played on grass courts.