Brazil to host 2014 Inas World Football Championships

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Inas have confirmed that Brazil will host the 2014 Inas World Football Championships in venues across Sao Paolo. In awarding the event to Brazil, Inas has continued the tradition of following the hosts of the FIFA World Cup.

The event, which will take place in August, will feature 12 teams and is one of the largest events on the Inas calendar.

John Ball, Inas Sport Director for Football said “I am delighted that Inas has made this decision and am sure that the event will be a fantastic success. The event is the centrepiece of our football programme, and will enhance our work to grow participation”.

 

 

 

Portugal beat France in World Basketball Championships

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Portugal have beaten France in the 7th World Basketball Championships. The game finished 56-37 as Portugal retained the title they won in 2010.

Earlier Australia beat Greece to take 3rd place in Ankara, Turkey.

7th World Basketball Championships ready to commence

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0001The seventh Inas basketball championships will take place in Ankara, Turkey next week. From October 22- 27, men’s teams will compete from Australia, France, Portugal, Greece, Poland and Turkey.

The tournament will take place at the Ankara Arena, which opened in April 2010 and has hosted many international competitions since, including the FIBA 2010 World Championships.

Inas President Jose Amaury Russo hopes to one day see basketball included in the Paralympic Games and this event will be a step on that journey. “I believe that basketball can be a springboard for the development of team sport and for the athletes of Inas,” he said. “I pay tribute to the work, dedication and commitment of all involved.”

Dr. Geoff Smedley, President of Inas Europe welcomes teams to Ankara “With all the support that is being offered I am sure we will all enjoy excellent championships,” he said. “I look forward to seeing our players compete and I also look forward to meeting many old friends and making some new friends with the teams.”

Games will be played in the afternoons with the bronze and gold medal games happening October 27 at 14:00 and 16:00.

Results will be available from the event website.

Inas receives Agitos funding

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Inas is to receive a grant of more than €14,000 to fund a project to develop opportunities in Africa for athletes with an intellectual disability.

The project is one of 30 to receive funding from the Agitos Foundation – launched by the International Paralympic Committee to promote disability sport development around the World – and is funded by the recent IOC-IPC partnership agreement.

Inas identified development across all five continental regions as one its key aims in its recently published strategic plan, as it works to become a more global organisation. Despite its size, there are currently few African nations in membership of Inas and few athletes registered to compete in the intellectual disability classification. No athletes from Africa competed within the classification at the recent Paralympic Games in London.

Through the project, Inas aims to put in place a development taskforce who will build partnerships with disability sports providers and existing competition organisers to raise awareness of Inas and sport for athletes with an intellectual disability, build understanding of the eligibility and classification process, and begin to identify the pathways so that more athletes have an opportunity to progress in competition.

Nick Parr, Inas Executive Director thanked the Agitos Foundation for their support. “We were delighted to learn that our application had been successful as it helps our work to ensure more athletes, from more nations, have the opportunity to enjoy and succeed in sport. Inas membership has grown to an all-time high this year and I hope that the project will enable us to support more nations to be inclusive of athletes with an intellectual disability”.

 

 

200m Individual Medley added to Paralympic swimming programme

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swim2The IPC have confirmed that, subject to the normal event selection criteria, the 200 Individual Medley event has been added to the programme for the 2016 Paralympic Games for swimmers with an intellectual disability. This is in addition to the existing programme within the classification – 100m Breaststroke, 100m Backstroke and 200m Freestyle.

The event featured in the recent IPC World Swimming Championships in Montreal and will remain on the World Championship programme through to the Paralympic Games in Rio De Janeiro.

The announcement follows the earlier decision to add the 400m sprint to the athletics programme and brings the total number of medal events for athletes with an intellectual disability in Paralympic events to 18.

 

2015 Inas Global Games delivery contract signed

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IMG_0621The contract between Inas and the Local Organising Committee of the 2015 Inas Global Games was signed this week in a brief ceremony. The week long event takes place in Guayaquil, Ecuador and features elite sport competition for up to 1000 athletes with an intellectual disability in seven sports.

The contract was signed by Nick Parr, Inas Executive Director and Juan Carlos Araujo, President of the organising committee.

 

 

Bids invited for 2015 Inas General Assembly

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The bid process has opened for the 2015 Inas Conference and General Assembly.

Inas members in good standing are eligible to submit a bid for the event which will take place in April 2015.

Further information, including the bid specification, can be found in the governance section of the website and the closing date for bids is 28th February 2014. 

Ecuadorian Sports Minister pledges support to Inas Global Games

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Athletes with an intellectual disability recently met Ecuadorian Minister of Sports, Jose Francisco Cevallos, who following the confirmation that the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador will host the 4th Inas Global Games in 2015.

It is the fourth version of the World Intellectual Impairment Sport Global Games; it will be the first time that this great event is held outside Europe and it will involve eight sports for World Championship (athletics, basketball, cycling, futsal, rowing, swimming, tennis, and tennis table).

Sports Minister, Jose Francisco Cevallos expressed great joy that Ecuador’s bid was the winner and pledged full support from the Government and especially from the Ministry of Sports to begin working immediately. Starting from January 2014, an office in Guayaquil will open in order to centralize the immense work involved in organizing the Games, and he will begin providing financial resources to continue with the organizational processes.

Read the full press release.

400m added to Rio programme

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22The International Paralympic Committee has confirmed the addition of the 400m to the athletics programme for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

It builds on the 2012 programme which included Long Jump, Shot and 1500m and continues the process of re-inclusion of athletes with an intellectual disability into the Games.  The Inas/IPC research group, established in 2007, will be responsible for developing a sports-classification system over the coming months to support inclusion.

Confirmation of an additional swimming event is anticipated shortly.

 

Australian twins selected to Inas Basketball World Championships

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From Western Magazine, New South Wales:

 

Twins Bernadette and Eliza-Jane Mills have been named in the Australian Pearls team to contest the World Intellectual Impairment Sport World Basketball Championships in Turkey in October.

The twins, 21, are relative veterans of the team, having played in countless international tournaments.

The Pearls – Australia’s national women’s basketball team for players with an intellectual disability – will head to Turkey ranked number one in the world as a result of gold medals at the 2011 World Intellectual Impairment Sport Global Games and the 2010 World Championships.

Long-serving head coach Larry Davidson has put together a talented side combining international experience and exciting young talent, and will look to the Mills twins to lead by example.

“Both Eliza and Bernie came into the side when they were around 15 or 16,” he said.

“They’re both very experienced and I will look to them to lead.

“Along with the other experienced players, I’d hope they’ll use that experience to guide our younger players around.”

Davidson’s request was justified, the twins believe, conceding the squad’s younger players would be anxious and in need of some guidance.

“They’ll be nervous,” Bernadette said.

“When I first went there I was overwhelmed.

“It’s a different level.”

“We’ll definitely look to help them,” Eliza added.

Davidson also heaped praise on the twins individually, highlighting their dedication as a main factor in their success.

“They’re both very athletic, determined young women,” he said.

“They’re rarely put off by anything, and both really get in and have a go.”

Davidson is under no illusions as to the size of the task facing his team, acknowledging their prospective opponents will be tougher than in previous competitions.

“The problem with playing the European nations is whether they have the money to send teams,” he said

“With the way the economic situation has been recently, when funds were low it has tended to be the women’s teams that get cut.

“But at the moment, it looks like most, if not all, involved nations will send teams.

“This means we’ll have a much tougher task ahead of us than perhaps we have in previous tournaments.

“And with that number one ranking all those teams will be out gunning for us.”

The twins agreed, pinpointing Russia and Japan as the Pearls’ main competition for a second consecutive title.

“Russia will be tough, if they come,” Eliza said.

“Japan too, they’re just little and fast,” Bernadette added.

While not getting ahead of herself Eliza conceded another gold medal is the ultimate goal.

“We’ve got to keep the record going,” she laughed.

“It’ll be tough,” Bernie added.

“But we never get sick of playing for Australia.”