Author: Editor Prime

World Wheelchair Rugby (WWR) is pleased to announce the host for the 2024 WWR Paralympic Qualification Tournament . The successful host city is Wellington, New Zealand.

The tournament will be held from the 20^th to the 24^th March 2024, with training and classification from the 18^th to the 19^th March 2024.The venue will be at the new home of Wellington rugby, the New Zealand Campus of Innovation and Sport, Trentham, Wellington. Located on the former site of the Central Institute of Technology in Trentham, the campus is the brainchild of developers Kevin Melville and Malcolm Gillies who purchased the site in 2016.

The 17-hectare sports hub features a 1000m² gym, an altitude and climate-controlled bike studio, cryotherapy facilities, indoor pools, a sports medicine laboratory, four outdoor fields, a huge indoor field and onsite accommodation for 360.

Kathy Newman, WWR Director of Competitions & Development said “WWR received two extremely strong bids to host the 2024 WWR Paralympic Qualification Tournament and we are pleased to award the bid to New Zealand.  The New Zealand bid was very athlete centred and will allow the athletes to focus on the task at hand which is to qualify for the 2024 Paris Paralympics.  This is the first time a final WWR qualification event will be held in the Asia Oceania Zone since we introduced the Last Chance Qualifier system. WWR looks forward to working with the Local Organizing Committee to ensure the best possible event is delivered.”

Richard Allcroft, President of WWR commented “Confirming the event early is important to those teams attending so they can prepare as much as possible in advance. Congratulations to New Zealand on their successful application to host and I was pleased to see that there was a competitive bid process. Good luck to those teams who will be attending in March next year.” 

Dr Cherie Harris, (New Zealand Wheelchair Rugby President) writes: “Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa  (Let us keep close together not wide apart).

To showcase the thrills and spills of international wheelchair rugby in Wellington, NZ is both a delight and an opportunity not to be missed. We cannot wait to welcome eight teams to battle it out for Paralympic Qualification in an innovative venue ‘Down Under’.

Werohia nga tumanako me te eke ki nga whetu (Defy expectations and reach for the stars).”

Paralympian and Wheel Black Cameron Leslie said: “Us hosting this tournament is huge. We always travel to Europe to compete which is challenging on many fronts so the Wheel Blacks will be proud to represent New Zealand with home-court advantage.“

“Something else the team will be proud of is being able to compete for our country in front of our whanau. Whanau is huge for our team and the ability to do what we do with their support courtside will be something special we will cherish. I’m excited that everyday Kiwis will be able to see the international version of the sport too.“

“We are targeting this tournament as part of our story as a team and to show how epic our sport of wheelchair rugby is and how amazing the players in the New Zealand team are.”

If you have any questions regarding the event these can be directed to Catriona McBean, Event Director via catriona@dsport.nz, or Kathy Newman, Director of Competitions & Development, via kathy.newman@worldwheelchair.rugby.

Ticket sales for the Paralympic Games Paris 2024 – which will take place next summer from 28th August to 8th September – will open at 10am on Monday 9th October.

There is just one address to remember, the same as for the Olympic ticket office: https://tickets.paris2024.org.

Almost 2.8 million tickets will be on sale for the Paralympic Games Paris 2024:

• From EUR 15 in all Para sports (500,000 tickets)
• At EUR 25 or less, for half of all the tickets
• At EUR 50 or less, for 80% of tickets
• All tickets for the finals will be between EUR 25 and 100.

Real-Time Ticketing, With No Drawing of Lots

Straight after the Olympic Games Paris 2024, the whole world will be invited to the “Return Match”, the Paralympic Games. The very first Paralympic Games to be held in France (28th August to 8th September 2024; 22 Para sports on the programme) will provide the 4,400 athletes from 184 different countries, spectators and television viewers with a setting worthy of the event – the Eiffel Tower Stadium for blind football, the Château de Versailles for Para equestrian events, Les Invalides for Para archery, etc. – grand settings for the greatest feats.

Ticketing for the Paralympic Games will be open continuously until the summer of 2024, on a first-come, first-served basis (with no drawing of lots) and subject to availability. Each buyer will be able to purchase, in real time, up to 30 tickets per ticketing account.

The Opening Ceremony, which will be held for the very first time in the history of the Games outside a stadium, in the magical setting of the Place de la Concorde and at the bottom of the Champs-Elysées, will also be on sale (from EUR 150 to 700).

Two Brand-New, Exclusive Offers To Experience The Event in Full

Two exclusive offers – brand-new and valid only for the Paralympic Games – will also be on sale to help you experience the event even more intensely, so as not to miss the performances of the greatest champions, and to cheer on Team France and discover the most emblematic competition venues:

– The “Discovery Pass”

Available for a single price of EUR 24, this pass allows you to discover several Para sports of your choice on the same day. Two passes will be available:

• The “Discovery Pass – Paris Centre”: the Grand Palais (wheelchair fencing and Para taekwondo), the Champ-de-Mars Arena (Para judo and wheelchair rugby), the Eiffel Tower Stadium (football 5-a-side) and Les Invalides (Para archery).
  • The “Discovery Pass – South Paris”: Paris Sud 1 Arena (boccia), Paris Sud 4 Arena (Para table tennis) and Paris Sud 6 Arena (goalball).

Seats are reserved for “Discovery Pass” holders at the venues indicated; they will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, subject to availability.

– The “Family Offer”

This offer allows you to enjoy the unique experience of the Paralympic Games as a family. For every two standard “adult” tickets purchased, up to two children’s tickets can be bought for EUR 10 each.

• This offer is available for all sports sessions (except for the Ceremonies and “Discovery Pass”).
  • Children’s ticket-holders must be under 12 years of age on the day of the event.
  • This offer is available in real time, according to the Para sports and sessions chosen.

Before Buying Your Tickets, Come Discover and Try Para Sports At The Second Paralympic Day, Organised This Sunday 8 October At The Place de la République in Paris

Paralympic Day is celebrating its second edition this Sunday, 8 October 2023, at the Place de la République, transformed for the occasion into a Paralympic sports arena.

With 24 Para sports demonstrations and introductions, and more than 90 athletes present to share their passion for sport, Paralympic Day is a unique sporting event, free of charge and open to everyone, whether or not they have a disability. On the programme: sports, challenges, meetings with champions, autograph sessions, etc. Paralympic Day is also the ideal opportunity to prepare your Paralympic Games schedule one day before ticketing opens at 10 a.m. on Monday 9 October 2023.

More info at: https://www.paris2024.org/fr/journee-paralympique

Key Dates and Figures

• Monday 9 October 2023, 10 a.m.: Opening of Paralympic Games ticket sales
• Almost 2.8 million tickets on sale; 259 sports sessions
• Up to four seating categories
• 500,000 tickets at EUR 15
• All Paralympic sports from EUR 15
• Half of all tickets for the public at EUR 25 or less
• 80% of tickets at EUR 50 or less
• All the finals between EUR 25 and 100

The Paralympic Games Paris 2024:

• From 28 August to 8 September
• 11 competition days
• 549 events
• 22 Para sports
• 4,400 athletes
• 184 National Paralympic Committees

Paris 2024 Hospitality: A New Model Offered By On Location

On Location, the Paris 2024 Official Hospitality Supplier, will be offering packages including guaranteed tickets for Paralympic Games sports events, as well as exceptional services and options, both at the competition venues and in the heart of the city (hotels, transport, gastronomy, tourist activities, etc.).

From 9 October, these Hospitality offers will be available online worldwide, via the official platforms for the public (https://paralympichospitality.paris2024.org) and for businesses (https://corporatehospitality.paris2024.org), as well as through On Location’s business network of authorised resellers.

Purchase Only Through Official Channels

By purchasing tickets or hospitality packages outside the official distribution channels, the purchaser risks not receiving them, or being refused access to the sports venues by the Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee Paris 2024, in accordance with the provisions in force. In addition, any unauthorised sale or resale outside the official distribution channels constitutes a crime under French law.

VISA

In recognition of the Olympic and Paralympic Games’ long-standing partnership with VISA, the VISA card will be the official and preferred method of payment.

Photo Credits – Stefano Zampieri / Fispes

The Italian national team wins the 2023 WWR European Championship – Division C in Lignano Sabbiadoro.
After defeating Ireland in the morning (49-40), Italy take revenge on Austria and claim victory 52-40. The runners-up try to respond to the hosts’ attacks, but can do nothing against the newly crowned champions.
Ireland take the bronze medal winning 48-38 against Sweden and qualify for Division B together with Italy and Austria.

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Italy
2. Austria
3. Ireland
4. Sweden

The second day of the European Championship Division C starts right where the first one left off, with Austria and Italy winning against Sweden (49-40) and Ireland (50-30) respectively.
But it is Austria that win the direct confrontation 52-50 and take the lead in the Championship at the end of the first phase of the tournament, leaving the host team in second place.
The last game sees Ireland beat Sweden 51-45 and thus determine the final standings ahead of tomorrow’s decisive matches.
On Saturday morning, Italy and Ireland will meet again at 9:30 while Austria and Sweden will be on the parquet at 11:45.
The bronze medal match will take place at 15:30 and the head-to-head for the gold medal will start at 17:30.

STANDINGS

1. AUT
2. ITA
3. IRL
4. SWE

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE

9:30 ITA– IRL

11:45 AUT – SWE

15:30 3°/4°

17:30 1°/2°

Italy and Austria take the first two wins of the 2023 WWR European Championship – Division C in Lignano Sabbiadoro.
The host team dominates the opening match of the tournament, defeating Sweden 53-39: at the end of the first half the Scandinavians are down by only 8 points, but in the third period Italy get the upper hand with a maximum lead of +16 and secure victory.

The second game is well balanced with only seven points separating the two teams: Austria wins 49-42 after a real head-to-head that lasts all four periods. Irland fight until the very last second and proves to be motivated and ready to give a hard time to any team on the parquet.

The second day of the European Championship will take place as follows:

9:30 SWE – AUT

11:45 IRL – ITA

17:00 ITA – AUT

19:15 SWE – IRL

The 2023 WWR International Wheelchair Rugby Cup Schedule is now available to view.

Taking place in Paris, France on the 18th October 2023, 8 Nations will be going head to head for the Gold!

To view the schedule, click the download button.

Chengdu will be host to the 12^th edition of The World Games, taking place from the 7^th to the 17^th August 2025. This will be the third time the multi-sport event is hosted in Asia since the first time The World Games was held in 1981.

Wheelchair Rugby made its debut as an invitational sport of The World Games in 2022, which took place in Birmingham, Alabama, USA. Wheelchair Rugby was also the first Paralympic sport at The World Games.

Tim Johnson, Head of Competitions, said “It’s fantastic to once again be part of The World Games which enables WWR to showcase the Low Point discipline of our game. There has been significant interest from Members eagerly awaiting the positive news. Much planning has been completed so far and we welcome the challenge to ensure we present an excellent image of what our athletes and sport can achieve both on and off the court in Chengdu in 2025”.

Sebastian Garvens, IWGA Sports Director, said “Wheelchair Rugby was the first ever para sport on The World Games programme. At the 2022 Games in Birmingham USA, the tournament proved to be a real asset to our multisport event, and the cooperation with the international federation has been great throughout the process. So the sport is more than welcome to participate again in Chengdu, People’s Republic of China. What is also significant is that Wheelchair Rugby was a trailblazer: there will be a total of four para sports or disciplines at the Chengdu Games. What makes the TWG special is that these sports are part of the events, and the medals therefore also count towards the official medal tally. This development reflects the principle of inclusiveness that we have committed to in our strategy paper ‘Growth beyond Excellence’.”

WWR President, Richard Allcroft said “I would like to thank the International World Games Association for their support and vision in including wheelchair rugby in The World Games in 2025. Wheelchair rugby will add to the already exciting array of sports on the programme and I hope that this will also reinvigorate the development of our sport in China”.

The 2023 WWR European Championship – Division C is now available to view.

Taking place in Udine, Italy on the 21st September 2023, Italy, Sweden, Austria, and Ireland will be going head to head for the Division C Championship!

To view the schedule, click the download button.

Loughborough University and WWR collaborate once again, with Chilling the Game: Mastering cooling strategies for Wheelchair Rugby

A player’s classification, impairment type and physical attributes all contribute to the predisposition of heightened thermal strain in Wheelchair Rugby.

Chilling the Game is a visual aid providing details of pre-, per-, and post-cooling strategies that may be optimal for a wheelchair rugby game. The aid helps players to identify and be consistent with what works best for them.

WWR would like to thank Dr Tom O’Brien, Prof. Vicky Goosey-Tolfrey and colleagues at the Peter Harrison Centre for Disability Sport at Loughborough University for their work on cooling methods for Wheelchair Rugby Athletes.

Chilling the Game: Mastering cooling strategies for Wheelchair Rugby can be found on the WWR Website:

https://worldwheelchair.rugby/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/cooling-methods-final-_-June-2023-WWR-approved-ver002.pdf

2023 World Wheelchair Rugby Asia-Oceania Championships concluded with finals day on 2nd July at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, with medals and one spot on the line in the gold medal match with the winner taking the automatic spot for 2024 Paris Paralympics.

Up first was the bronze medal match between the favourites New Zealand who was confidently coming into the match having dispatched Korea twice in the round robin and pushing both Japan and Australia who were playing in the Gold medal match, and Korea who had a bad disruption just before the tournament which lead to them forfeiting their 3 round 2 matches.

This match went according to plan for the Kiwis and were dominant from start to finish rolling out all squad members in this match, though there were signs of mistakes that had cost them against Japan and Australia. Korea gave it their all but they just weren’t up to the task to compete against New Zealand in this one. Korea did manage to get their second highest game total in the bronze medal match though. Final score – New Zealand 53 Korea 31

Once the dust had settled on the bronze, up next was the game that was the most anticipated match. Though Japan had won both encounters between the 2 teams in the round robin stage, Australia had shown enough promise to push the hosts and the feeling around the stadium was that it was going to be close.

The first 4 minutes went try for try until Japan broke the deadlock with a turnover. With 2 minutes left and Australia was looking for a turnover of their own, they managed to cough the ball up 3 times inside a minute and Japan went in to the first break 16-12 in the lead.

Second period began with Australia getting some luck and Ryley Batt finding spaces he couldn’t get to in the first period, while Japan kept up their well-structured play. It took until just over 1 minute left in the half for the first turnover of the period to happen due to a loose pass from the Australian side. Japan used their first 60 second time out of the game to score last in the half and taking advantage of starting the 3rd period with possession. Japan managed to extend their lead by 1, with going in to the longer break leading 30-25

Third period started with a moment that summed up things for Japan and Australia with Shinichi Shimakawa tipping over but managing to get a pass off in time for the hosts to open the scoring in 2nd half. This was a period where time outs looked to be critical, with Japan using all their remaining 30 second time outs and only 1 60 second time out remained at the end of the period. Australia had used their 60 second time outs but still had 1 remaining 30 second time out so there was hope for the Australians, though they were down 41-33 going in to the last period.

Unfortunately for the few Australians in the crowd, hopes of their side turning things around quickly faded when their side made 2 turnovers before 2 minutes had gone. The Australian side always kept trying but, in the end, Japan were too good and kept extending their lead, and ended triumphing 55-44, sending off their coach Kevin Orr who had announced he was stepping down before the tournament started, with another tournament win.

Best in Class –
0.5 James McQuillan (Australia)
1.0 Hitoshi Ogawa (Japan)
1.5 Seiya Norimatsu (Japan)
2.0 Andrew Edmonson (Australia)
2.5 Cameron Leslie (New Zealand)
3.0 Daisuke Ikezaki (Japan)
3.5 Katsuya Hashimoto (Japan)

Tournament MVP – Yukinobu Ike (Japan)

Final Placings

1st – Japan
2nd – Australia
3rd – New Zealand
4th – Korea