The Classification Committee would like to thank those Member Nations and Classifiers who took the time to provide feedback on the new IWRF Classification Rules and the IWRF Classifier Handbook. In response to your feedback, we have corrected some typographical errors and made some minor additions as points of clarification to some articles where there was ambiguity. We appreciate that these are both extremely large documents, and over time, we will no doubt continue to make minor improvements to improve clarity, consistency and correct any other minor spelling or formatting errors that we discover.
Thank you for your patience with us as we developed these two new documents over the last 2.5 years. I am sure you can appreciate that it was a mammoth undertaking for us, and I can’t thank Anne Hart enough for doing much of the heavy lifting on this task. Thanks also to members of the Classification Committee for their guidance and wisdom in navigating a variety of issues along the way.
The finalised versions of both documents are now available at International Wheelchair Rugby Federation: Classification. If Member Nations wish to produce non-English language versions of these documents, you are welcome to do so. However, the English versions will remain the only official versions of these documents endorsed by the IWRF.
Medical Diagnostic Information Requirements
We have received a number of queries regarding our new requirements around mandatory medical diagnostic information for athletes. The IPC Classification Code requires us to confirm that athletes have a permanent, verifiable health condition that results in an eligible impairment, as defined in our IWRF Classification Rules. We perform this verification by examining medical diagnostic information submitted by athletes.
To streamline this process, we have created 2 new forms that will need to be completed when submitting the required information. These forms are:
- IWRF Medical Diagnostic Form
- IWRF Medical Review Request Form
IWRF Medical Diagnostic Form
This form is required for all New (N) athletes and must be received by the IWRF Head of Classification a minimum of 6 weeks prior to the event where the athlete is to be classified for the first time. This form must be completed by a registered medical doctor, with a specialisation in the athlete’s health condition (where possible). The form must also be accompanied by medical documentation that confirms the presence of the athlete’s health condition. The form provides guidance regarding the types of medical evidence that are acceptable for each impairment type. The form must be completed in English, and any accompanying medical documentation must also be in English or have a verified English translation.
IWRF Medical Review Request Form
This form is required for athletes who have sport class statuses of Confirmed (C), Review (R) or Fixed Review Date (FRD) and wish to be re-classified due to a change in circumstances with respect to their health condition. This may be necessary, for example, if an athlete:
- Received treatment which may change their impairment profile (e.g., Botox injections, tendon releases, amputation)
- Has an impairment that is progressive and/or has changed to an extent that the athlete most likely does not fit his/her current sport class profile any more
- Has a new additional eligible health condition that has resulted in a permanent change to the athlete’s degree of impairment to an extent that the athlete most likely does not fit his/her current sport class profile anymore.
This form must be received by the IWRF Head of Classification a minimum of 12 weeks prior to the competition where the athlete, if the medical review is accepted, will undergo re-evaluation. The change in impairment must be demonstrated by medical documentation. Any included medical documentation must be in English or be accompanied by a verified English translation. This form also requires endorsement by the athlete’s NMO or NPC. If Medical Review is accepted, the athlete’s sport class status will be changed to Review (R) with immediate effect.
Submission of Medical Information
Submission of medical forms and documentation will be via a secure online upload system. Emailed information will not be accepted due to the fact that email systems are not considered to be secure, and therefore are not suitable for sending sensitive athlete medical information to the IWRF. Details of the online submission system are still being finalised by the IWRF and will be available on the Classification web page at IWRF.com in due course.
Retention of Medical Information by the IWRF
The IWRF will retain the submitted medical documentation until the end of the event where the athlete is classified for the first time, or the athlete’s medical review occurs. At the end of the event, the athlete’s Classification Database file will be updated to reflect that the medical documentation received was accepted and met the IWRF’s requirements in terms of confirming that the athlete has an eligible health condition and impairment type. At this time, all submitted documentation will be securely destroyed.
There may be situations where Classification Panels request to see an athlete’s medical diagnostic information in order to assist them in allocating a sport class. With this in mind, the IWRF strongly recommends that athletes retain copies of any medical information submitted during the processes outlined in this article, and have them readily available, should they be required again in the future.