Paratriathlon January Update TRIATHLON AUSTRALIA Document Name 2 Version, Month Year 1. 2015 National Paratriathlon Championships Entries are now open for the 2015 National Paratriathlon Championships which will be held at Redcliffe, Brisbane, QLD on March 29th. This event is a key selection race for the Australian Team for the Open Paratriathlon World Championships. Entries close on Sunday the 22nd of March at 11:59pm with late entries online until Wednesday the 25th, late entries will incur a $20 late fee. Information regarding the event can be found here: http://www.triathlonqld.com.au/Events/StateSeries/QueenslandSprint.aspx Link for entries: https://endurancecui.active.com/event-reg/select-race?e=9342053&locale=en_AU When entering select the Individual Age Group entry initially, and the paratriathlon sections will come up later in the process. Competition will be in Open Paratriathlon (classified and using ITU approved equipment) or TWD categories, although the two will go as one wave. Note that only athletes competing as Open athletes can win National Championship medals. Classification for athletes with a physical impairment will be provided on Saturday 28th March. If you would like to be classified please get your medical doctor to complete this form, and email it to [email protected] before Friday 13th March. Requests for classification after this date may be possible but are subject to there being appointment times available. http://www.triathlon.org/uploads/docs/ITU_Classification_PI_Medical_Diagnostics_Form.pdf Classification for athletes with a visual impairment will not be conducted. Athletes with a visual impairment entering a paratriathlon event for the first time can compete in the Open race, if they can provide a current classification from another sport. Please forward a copy of this paperwork to [email protected]. TRIATHLON AUSTRALIA Document Name 3 Version, Month Year 2. New ITU Rules and Regulations The 2015 ITU Rules and Regulations can now be found on the ITU website http://www.triathlon.org/uploads/docs/itusport_competition- rules_december20141.pdf Below is a summary of some relevant changes/new rules/deleted rules which impact paratriathlon. It is recommended that you are familiar with all the ITU rules relevant to racing particularly if you want to race Open or Elite Paratriathlon events. This list does NOT cover all rules or all changes. Handlers Personal handlers are to be allotted as follows: o Up to one (1) personal handler for sport classes PT2, PT3 and PT4. The classification process will determine for each athlete the allowance of using one handler in the competitions. The approval for already classified athletes will be done by an Approval Panel composed by: 1. ITU Head of Classification; 2. A member of the ITU Paratriathlon Committee; 3. A person designated by Sport Department. o Up to two (2) personal handlers for sport class PT1; o No personal handlers for sport class PT5 (Guides may act as the personal handler for this sport class). The process for determining if any already classified athletes can have handlers is understood to be by application through completion of a specific form. Once this form is on the ITU website I will advise classified athletes. Which athletes have approval for a handler will eventually be indicated on the Classification Masterlist. TRIATHLON AUSTRALIA Document Name 4 Version, Month Year PT1 Run is now draft legal PT1 Handcycle can have disc brakes on the rear wheels PT1 athletes have a new spatial allocation in transition o Each PT1 paratriathlete will have an individual space of 4x2 meters. The athlete, the handlers and all the equipment will be inside this space, during manouvres in the transition area. o PT1 paratriathles doing the transition outside the individual space - Time penalty at the run penalty box. PT5 Factor – a factoring system will continue to be used for B1 and B2/3 athletes. The actual time allocation to be used in 2015 is to be advised shortly. A working group has been extensively analysing and discussing this. The Technical Officials and Local Organising Committee officials can no longer assist athletes in the removal of wetsuits. Any artificial handgrips or prosthetics used during the bike segment must have some method of quick release from the handlebar. Paratriathletes using unprotected sharp objects, screws, prosthetic liners, or prosthetic devices that can be harmful (will be disqualified) Paratriathletes leaving equipment in pre-transition after exiting it. - Warning and amend - If not corrected: time penalty at the run penalty box. TRIATHLON AUSTRALIA Document Name 5 Version, Month Year 3. Rio Paralympic Games Qualification Process This is how Australia will qualify to enter any Australian athletes in any of the three medal events for women (PT2, PT4, PT5) or three medal events for men (PT1, PT2, PT4). Triathlon Australia will prepare a Nomination Criteria to select the individual athletes who will be nominated to the APC for selection to compete in those slots. The qualification period will open on 1 July, 2015 and will close on June 30, 2016. To be eligible for selection by an NPC, athletes must both be ranked on the ITU Paralympic Qualification List by the closing date, as well as be internationally classified with either a 'confirmed' or 'review' sport class status. The three best scores during this period will constitute the athlete’s ranking. The qualification slots will be allocated to the National Paralympic Committee (NPC) through the ITU World Championships and the ITU Paralympic Qualification List, as opposed to individual athletes, with a maximum of two qualification slots per medal event allotted to an NPC. The top ranked athletes in their medal events at the 2015 ITU World Championships will earn their NPC a spot. Additionally, the top six ranked athletes on the ITU Paralympic Qualification List will clench their NPC a berth to the Paralympics. The host country (Brazil) will have the right to directly qualify one male and female athlete if not otherwise qualified through the above methods, with another eight qualification slots determined by the Bipartite Commission. Any qualification not used by an NPC will be reallocated to the next highest ranked athlete in the respective medal event on the Paralympic Qualification List. What does this mean to athletes who want to go to the Rio Paralympic Games? You need to be classified and competing in sanctioned paratriathlon events and building a points ranking on the ITU International Ranking List throughout 2015. The National Championships at Redcliffe on 29th March will be the last opportunity for classification in Australia until January 2016. If you are a new athlete who would like to try and qualify for Rio please contact Kathryn Periac on 0422 586 463 or [email protected] TRIATHLON AUSTRALIA Document Name 6 Version, Month Year The Paralympic Long List Triathlon Australia has identified a list of any athlete or staff that is a prospective 2016 Paralympic team member and provided details of these people to the Australian Paralympic Committee for the purpose of collecting information such as personal details, clothing sizes etc in preparation for the outfitting and entering of the final team. This is a fluid list to which people can be added or removed as circumstances change. If you are on the list you will be informed. TRIATHLON AUSTRALIA Document Name 7 Version, Month Year 4. TWD, Open and Elite Paratriathlon The terms TWD (Triathletes with Disabilities), Open Paratriathlon and Elite Paratriathlon are becoming commonly used now in triathlon. As per the Triathlon Australia All of Sport Framework these different terms are used where appropriate to support inclusive and welcoming opportunities for all as well as ensuring that the ITU Rules and Regulations are applied. In simple terms: TWD identifies people with a disability competing in any triathlon event anywhere. In particular classification and the use of ITU Paratriathlon equipment is not required (as long as equipment used is considered safe). Participants are encouraged to contact the race organiser and work with them directly to facilitate their safe and satisfying inclusion in the event. Open Paratriathlon identifies athletes who have been classified eligible under ITU Rules and Regulations and are using approved equipment in a designated National or International Paratriathlon Event. It is perhaps closest to Age Group competition for able bodied triathletes, and the Open Paratriathlon Team is part of the Australian Age Group Team at the Triathlon World Championships. The Selection Policy for the Open Paratriathlon Team for World Championships is due to be released shortly, and will be with the Selection Policy for the Age Group Team on the TA website under the Age Group tab. Elite Paratriathlon is the equivalent of Elite able bodied triathlon. Athletes are racing at a very high level of performance, and fully meet all ITU Rules and Regulations, including classification and equipment. Athletes are selected to race Elite by the Triathlon Australia Elite Selection Committee (TAESC). TRIATHLON AUSTRALIA Document Name 8 Version, Month Year These categories are used at a range of events in Australia and overseas. National Paratriathlon Events – would usually have an Open and a TWD category, which would usually race together but be identified separately on result sheets. The National Paratriathlon Championships will have Open and TWD in 2015. Medals for TWD will not be awarded as the athletes in these categories are not competing equally (ie through classification and by using approved equipment). Oceania Championships – is an ITU Continental Championships, so Elite athletes are selected by TAESC, as well as Open and TWD direct entries. At present in Australia this is the lowest level of Elite racing, so a more generous selection criterion is used to give more athletes a chance of demonstrating their performance level. There is still a performance test applied.