Wheelchair fencing calendar open for bids

10/11/2020

Just a few days remain for countries to bid to host major International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation (IWAS) Wheelchair Fencing competitions in late 2021 through to 2024.

The sport is inviting nations to stage senior and under 17 and under 23 World Cups for the next four years, as well as regional and youth World Championships.

In addition, due to the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, there will be regional Championships held in 2022 as well as previously announced rescheduled editions taking place in 2021.

Nations were asked in September for bids for the new calendar ahead of the 2020 IWAS Wheelchair Fencing Sport Congress on 21 November. This will enable the Sport Commission to give an update to countries.

The newly elected IWAS Wheelchair Fencing Executive Committee will review and approve the calendar for the coming years following the congress.

Charmaine Hooper, Chief Executive Office of IWAS, said:

“This is a great opportunity for new and established Local Organising Committees [LOCs] to come forward with their proposals to stage competitions in one of the most engaging sports around. Not only that, but the events will also follow the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and some will be part of the build-up to Paris 2024.

“We want to expand the number of countries on the wheelchair fencing circuit, and we hope that by giving organisers longer to plan and prepare we can do just that.

“We also acknowledge the current challenges posed by COVID-19, so will accept a letter that expresses the interest or intention to host an event rather than a full bid. This must include the competition type, the month and year it is currently planned for and the date when we can expect the full bid.

“We have received an encouraging amount of interest so far but want to be as flexible as possible to account for present circumstances and give as many LOCs as possible the chance to bid.”

The competitions open for hosting are:

Senior IWAS Wheelchair Fencing World Cups, starting from October 2021 and every year until July 2024.

European Championships for 2022 and 2024

Americas Championships for 2022 and 2024

Asian Championships for 2022 and 2024

Under 17 and under 23 World Championships 2023

The bid documents can be found at IWAS Wheelchair Fencing’s website here.

The closing dates for bids is 15 November 2020.

Applications must be sent to [email protected] with [email protected] in CC.