Athlete Council | International Paralympic Committee

THE IPC ATHLETES' COUNCIL

Our mission is to be the voice of all current, future and retired international athletes within the Paralympic Movement, in the strategic direction of the IPC and to support our athletes both on and off the field of play.

To achieve this mission, the IPC Athletes’ Council has a leading role to ensure all athlete representatives have the support and resources required to be effective athlete leaders within their country and sport.

Our strategy will serve as a guideline to all Paralympic Movement stakeholders in creating an effective athlete voice that represents the needs of Para athletes.

The IPC Athletes' Council also oversees the Athletes’ Council election process during the Paralympic Games. The Athletes' Council seeks to ensure that elections are organised in a democratic and fair manner.

Furthermore, recognising that the election process is the primary means by which athletes express their voice, the Athletes' Council focuses on education and awareness initiatives aimed at maximum participation.

a group of male and female Para athletes sitting and standing outside a white building — The IPC Athletes' Council at the IPC Headquarters in Bonn

CONTACT US

The IPC Athletes' Council wants to hear from you! We encourage athletes to share their views, express concerns, put forth ideas and get involved! Please e-mail us either personally at the e-mail addresses below or collectively at [email protected]

The IPC Athletes' Council can also be found on Facebook.

ROLE	NAME	SPORT	COUNTRY	LANGUAGES	E-MAIL
Chairperson	Chelsey Gotell	Para swimming	Canada	English	[email protected]
Vice Chairperson	Kurt Fearnley	Para athletics	Australia	English	[email protected]
Member at Large	Monica Bascio	Para cycling	USA	English	[email protected]
Member at Large	Gizem Girismen	Para archery	Turkey	Turkish & English	[email protected]
Member at Large	Dame Sarah Storey	Para cycling	Great Britain	English	[email protected]
Member at Large	Marie Bochet	Para alpine skiing	France	French	[email protected]
Member at Large	Birgit Skarstein	Para Nordic skiing	Norway	Norwegian	[email protected]
Member at Large	Rudolf Klemetti	Para Nordic skiing	Finland	Finnish	[email protected]
Co-opted member	Nurulasyiqah Mohammad Taha	Boccia	Singapore	.	[email protected]
Co-opted member	Suk Man Hong	Athletics	Korea	.	[email protected]
Co-opted member	Natalie Du Toit	Swimming	South Africa	.	[email protected]
IOC Athletes' Commission Representative	Danka Barteková	Shooting	Slovakia	.	.

INTERESTED IN BECOMING A MEMBER?

The first requirement of a candidate for the IPC Athletes' Council is a keen interest in the Paralympic Movement.

The second requirement is a strong commitment to working for and representing all IPC athletes.

The third and most important requirement is having the time and passion to make a difference for Paralympic athletes of today and tomorrow.

To be eligible for election to the Athletes' Council an individual must be an active Paralympic athlete.

An active Paralympic athlete is defined as:

an athlete that is competing in the current edition of the Paralympic Games or Paralympic Winter Games at which the election is taking place
an athlete who has competed in either of the previous two editions of the Paralympic Games (if the election concerns summer sport athletes) or Paralympic Winter Games (if the election concerns winter athletes).