Will Para-cycling make it into the 2020 Paralympic games?
The final verdict on which sports will feature in the Tokyo games will be made at an international Paralympic Committee governing board meeting in Abu Dhabi with their decision being announced tomorrow. 16 sports already had their places confirmed back in October and the committee say there will only be a maximum of 23 sports that make up the Paralympic programme.
Cycling’s Late Submission:
The UCI, cycling’s governing body submitted an application for inclusion after the deadline and as a result of the late submission; it was not considered before the October decision.
Paralympic champion Jody Cundy publicly criticised the UCI’s delays and said it was embarrassing for an international governing body.
Other sports waiting to have their fate sealed are para-canoe, football 5-a-side, football 7-a-side, judo, para-taekwondo, sailing and wheelchair fencing. All of these sports still in the running had problems identified by the International Paralympic Committee and were given chance to provide further information on the issues identified during the review process.
Confirmed Sports:
The 16 already confirmed sports feature athletics, archery, boccia, equestrian, goalball, powerlifting, rowing, shooting, sitting volleyball, swimming, table tennis, triathlon, wheel chair rugby, wheelchair basketball, wheel chair table tennis and badminton will also make its paralympic debut.
What Now?
We hope the International Paralympic Committee decide to feature para-cycling, as the popularity of cycling is at its highest it would be a shame to stall the growth by a mistake on the UCI’s part. Stay tuned to find out how the International Paralympic Committee fill the remaining spaces on the programme after the announcement tomorrow. Find out more cycling news at BBC Sport.