IPC to provide EUR 1.8 million worth of grants to support members during COVID-19 pandemic

• Historic initiative follows UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities’ theme ‘Building Back Better: toward a disability-inclusive, accessible and sustainable post COVID-19 world’

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is to make EUR 1.8 million worth of grant funding available to its 200-plus member organisations during 2021 as part of efforts to provide additional support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This one-off grant support initiative - the biggest of its kind in the history of the IPC - is a result of financial support from the Toyota NPC Development Programme and IPC international partner Citi. It is also a combination of the IPC’s 2020 and 2021 Grant Support Programme, which is an annual pool of funding that members can apply for to deliver projects that support athletes, raise awareness about the Paralympic Movement or develop Para sport.

The historic announcement also follows the United Nations' International Day of Persons with Disabilities’ theme 'Building Back Better: toward a disability-inclusive, accessible and sustainable post COVID-19 world', which is being celebrated today (3 December).

Grant support funding for IPC members will be awarded from January 2021 in five key areas:

1. License and membership fee grants

• Grants of up to EUR 7,500 will be available to eligible National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) to cover World Para Sport (WPS) athlete licence fees and IPC membership fees.

2. Para sport development

• Grants of up to EUR 7,500 will be available to eligible NPCs to offer training support for Para athletes, coach and athlete stipend, logistical support for training, WPS athlete license fees and other eligible activities.

3. Paralympic Games readiness

• Grants of up to EUR 7,500 will be available to eligible NPCs to support with Paralympic Games communication and fundraising campaigns, WPS athlete license fees and other eligible activities.

4. Training and education

• Grants of up to EUR 15,000 will be available to all International Federations and International Organisations of Sport for the Disabled for the development of education pathways and the development of online training courses in different languages.

5. Regional organisation grants

• The African Paralympic Committee, Asian Paralympic Committee, European Paralympic Committee and Oceania Paralympic Committee will each receive grants of EUR 40,000 to support eligible activities that benefit athletes and NPCs from their respective regions.

Andrew Parsons, IPC President, said: "As a membership focussed organisation, the aim of this one-off initiative is to provide support to our 200-plus members during a critical time for the Paralympic Movement, world of sport and global society as a whole.

"Courtesy of Toyota and Citi’s fantastic support, we are able to make a total of EUR 1.8 million worth of grants available to NPCs, International Federations, International Organisations of Sport for the Disabled and Regional Organisations. This is the IPC’s biggest ever one-off investment into its members at a time when they need it the most.

"The pandemic has impacted each of our member organisations differently. Due to the COVID-19 restrictions around the globe, implementing our annual Grant Support Programme does not make sense right now as it would be difficult for our members to implement traditional sport development programmes. Therefore, we have combined a number of initiatives in order to bring the greatest level of grant support ever seen to our members."

The IPC’s members will be able to apply for grant funding between 3-30 December 2020. Successful projects will be announced in the last week of January 2021 with grants awarded by February 2021.

Full guidelines and instructions on how members can apply for grant funding will be made available to all members by email on 3 December at 4pm CET.