In the 1980s, supported by the demands of Games’ organising committees to reduce the number of sport classes, classification transitioned from medical to functional classification, a system still used ...

Classification for the Sonar is based on a functional points system with a minimum of 1 point for severely disabled athletes rising by scale to a high of 7 points for less disabled athletes.

Sports such as swimming have developed a functional classification system, whereby every eligible athlete with a physical impairment is classified into one of ten classes (S1 to S10).

In 1948 Dr Ludwig Guttmann organised the first para-sport competitions, as an extension of the rehabilitation process. In the 1950s, questions were raised that “consideration must be given to whether ...