How is para sport made fair?

A race should be fair, so that everyone has a chance to win. Here is how para sport does it.

News Nibbles Edition 3 · Saturday 24 October 2026· Page 3 of the paper

Think about a race between a runner and someone in a wheelchair. That would not be fair! So para athletes are put into groups called classes. In each class, the athletes have the same kind of disability. They race each other.

Letters and numbers

Each class has a letter and a number. T is for track, like running. F is for field, like throwing and jumping. T11 is for runners who cannot see. T20 is for athletes who learn and think in a different way. T54 is for wheelchair racers.

Clever helpers

A runner who cannot see runs with a guide. They hold a short rope between them. The guide helps them stay in their lane, but must not pull! In the T11 class, every runner covers their eyes. Then nobody can see, so it is fair.

Four ways to make it fair

1. Classes

Athletes with the same kind of disability race each other.

2. Guides

A guide holds a short rope with a runner who cannot see.

3. Special gear

Fast, light wheelchairs and bendy running blades.

4. Listen!

In goalball, the ball has bells inside, so players can hear it.

Para sports to know

Boccia: throw soft balls close to a little white ball.
Sitting volleyball: volleyball played sitting on the floor, with a low net.
Blind football: the ball rattles, so players can hear where it is.
Wheelchair basketball: fast, bumpy and very exciting!

Did you know?The first Paralympic Games, the world’s biggest para sports event, were held in Rome, Italy, in 1960.

Big wordclass
A group of athletes who race or play against each other.