Para Cycling (Juniors) – Classification

This is a brief overview of the sport classes and is in no way legally binding. In all cases the sport specific classification rules will take precedence. Athletes with physical impairments either compete on handcycles, tricycles or bicycles. Athletes with a vision impairment compete on tandems with a sighted “pilot.”

DETERMINING ELIGIBILITY

There are different sport classes for handcycling, H1-5 , where lower numbers indicating restrictions in both upper and lower limbs, and higher numbers indicating restrictions in lower limbs only. Tricycle athletes are divided into two classes, T1 and T2 , with the former being allocated to athletes with more significant co-ordination impairments. Athletes who are able to use a standard bicycle compete in the five sport classes C1-5 , with lower numbers indicating a more severe limitation in lower and/or upper limbs. Cyclists with a vision impairment race tandem with a sighted cycler in front.

Impaired Muscle Power  Impaired Passive Range of Movement  Limb Deficiency  Leg Length Difference  Hypertonia  Ataxia  Athetosis Vision Impairment

Athletes with Impaired Muscle Power have a Health Condition that either reduces or eliminates their ability to voluntarily contract their muscles in order to move or to generate force. 

Examples of an Underlying Health Condition that may lead to Impaired Muscle Power include spinal cord injury (complete or incomplete, tetra-or paraplegia or paraparesis), muscular dystrophy, post-polio syndrome and spina bifida.

Athletes with Impaired Passive Range of Movement have a restriction or a lack of passive movement in one or more joints. 

Examples of an Underlying Health Condition that may lead to Impaired Passive Range of Movement include arthrogryposis and contracture resulting from chronic joint immobilisation or trauma affecting a joint.

Athletes with Limb Deficiency have total or partial absence of bones or joints as a consequence of trauma (for example traumatic amputation), illness (for example amputation due to bone cancer) or congenital limb deficiency (for example dysmelia). 

Athletes with Leg Length Difference have a difference in the length of their legs as a result of a disturbance of limb growth, or as a result of trauma. 

Athletes with Hypertonia have an increase in muscle tension and a reduced ability of a muscle to stretch caused by damage to the central nervous system. 

Examples of an Underlying Health Condition that may lead to Hypertonia include cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury and stroke. 

Athletes with Ataxia have uncoordinated movements caused by damage to the central nervous system. 

Examples of an Underlying Health Condition that may lead to Ataxia include cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, stroke and multiple sclerosis.

Athletes with Athetosis have continual slow involuntary movements. 

Examples of an Underlying Health Condition that may lead to Athetosis include cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury and stroke. 

Athletes with Vision Impairment have reduced, or no vision caused by damage to the eye structure, optical nerves or optical pathways, or visual cortex of the brain. 

Examples of an Underlying Health Condition that may lead to Vision Impairment include retinitis pigmentosa and diabetic retinopathy.