Classification

It may seem strange to some people that you have to 'classified' to compete in Paratriathlon, but the process is relatively pain free and means that you should be competing against others with similar functional ability or impairments. In theory, at least.

Paratriathlon is a new sport within the Paralympic movement and there are currently only six categories to squeeze everyone into:

http://www.britishtriathlon.org/para-tri/page.php?article=742&category=/para-tri/

I believe that in the future, there will be more subdivisions to each class, so that more people can compete and classification is fairer.

I attended an open day at Loughborough University in October 2010 for athletes interested in Paratriathlon and was able to be classified by Penny and Sam, who mulled over me for some time. I was completely honest and open, but left it up to them to decide. As a sci incomplete I sit in both camps, being a spastic paraplegic but also a wobbly walker who uses two sticks for balance and a lightweight wheelchair out and about.

The relief to finally be told where I stood as regards competing was immense! I could now think about doing a whole event, not just the swim as part of a team. But what I hadn't realised was the huge financial burden which was heading my way.