IPC Publishes 2017 Annual Report

The International Paralympic Committee has published its 2017 Annual Report.

The report can be found at: https://www.paralympic.org/news/ipc-publishes-2017-annual-report

Covering 90 pages, the report tracks the progress made by the IPC during 2017 in meeting the six strategic goals which form part of the IPC Strategic Plan 2015-2018. The report also covers the work undertaken by the 10 Para sports for which the IPC acts as the international federation.

Key 2017 highlights include:

• Election by the IPC General Assembly of a new President and Governing Board

• Staging the first IPC Athlete Forum and the delivery of multiple Proud Paralympian workshops

• Toyota becoming the first IPC Worldwide Partner to support every National Paralympic Committee

• Digital activities reaching close to 1 billion people

• Winning the prestigious Lui Che Woo Prize in recognition of the IPC’s work

• Successful delivery of nine World Para Sport Championships, including record global coverage for London 2017

• The launch of the Agitos Foundation’s I’mPOSSIBLE education programme

Andrew Parsons, IPC President, said: "The year 2017 marked a new era for the Paralympic Movement with Sir Philip Craven stepping down as President following 16 outstanding years.

"It was fitting therefore in his final months that the IPC was honoured with the prestigious Lui Che Woo Prize – global recognition of the Paralympic Movement’s work in transforming lives, cities and societies.

"The future for the Paralympic Movement is extremely promising and key to the IPC’s continued growth is building stronger partnerships with key stakeholders, such as the IOC and commercial partners.

"In 2017 the IPC doubled its investment in membership engagements and NPC development projects to more than EUR 2 million thanks to record investment from commercial and broadcast partners. This investment, coupled with the development work of the Agitos Foundation, is helping to strengthen the IPC membership at all levels.

"The IPC and the Agitos Foundation made great strides forward in terms of educating the next generation. Several Proud Paralympian workshops were held at various major events and I’mPOSSIBLE, the Agitos Foundation’s education initiative targeting schools, was launched globally.

"Athlete classification is fundamental to fair competition in Para sport and the publication of Classification Model Rules and a Model of Best Practice on National Classification, together with the International Federation Athlete Classification Compliance Survey, will go some way to improving standards across all sports.

"Going forward, we must fulfil the untapped potential within the Paralympic Movement, make each of our members even stronger and reinforce the work ethic and culture that has seen Para sport enjoy unprecedented growth and made the IPC one of the most respected international governing bodies in world sport."

During 2017, the IPC’s revenues and expenditure rose to close to EUR 22 million. The IPC invested significantly in cyber security and IT services, while there was also an increase in legal costs associated with the Russian Paralympic Committee’s suspension.

Thirty-one development projects benefited from the fifth edition of the Agitos Foundation Grant Support Programme, bringing the total spending on the initiative which benefits IPC members to EUR 3.2 million since 2013.

The IPC’s workforce - covering core departments, World Para Sports and Agitos Foundation – grew from 89 to 101 full and part-time members of staff.

As part of its sustainability efforts, the IPC 2017 Annual Report will only be published online.

-ends-

Notes to the Editor

For further information, please contact Craig Spence, IPC Chief Marketing and Communications Officer on e-mail: craig.spence@paralympic.org. Alternatively, please visit www.paralympic.org.

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement. It co-ordinates the organisation of the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games, and serves as the International Federation for 10 sports, for which it supervises and co-ordinates the World Championships and other competitions. The IPC’s vision is to enable Para athletes to achieve sporting excellence and inspire and excite the world.

To watch videos and subscribe to ParalympicSport.TV, please go to www.youtube.com/ParalympicSportTV.

Also, you may follow the Paralympic Movement on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Paralympics or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/paralympics.

25 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is www.aroundtherings.com, for subscribers only