What is Classification

Athletes competing in Paralympic sports have impairments that may place them at a disadvantage. To address this, a classification system has been developed to minimize the impact of these impairments on sporting performance. Classification ensures that the outcome of competition is determined by an athlete’s training, endurance, and tactical skills rather than the degree of impairment. It defines who is eligible to compete and groups athletes into sport classes based on their limitations and functional abilities in a specific sport.

In SAMBO for blind and visually impaired athletes, classification is the foundation of fair and competitive sport, ensuring the grouping of athletes based on functional abilities, promoting inclusion, and maintaining the integrity of the sport.

Fundamentals of Classification

Classification is a key feature of parasport that provides the fundamental structure for fair, reliable, competitive, and meaningful competitions for athletes with disabilities around the world.

Classification across the Paralympic Movement is governed by a central document — the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Classification Code. It is supplemented by five International Standards, each relating to specific components required for Classification.

The Code contains a clear and authoritative statement of the purpose of classification and serves as a set of rules and procedures designed to ensure the highest possible quality of classification.

Learn about the essential foundations of Paralympic classification in the IPC online course.

Fundamentals of Classification in Sambo for Blind and Visually Impaired Athletes

To participate in international competitions in sambo for blind and visually impaired athletes organized by the International SAMBO Federation (FIAS), athletes must be assigned a sport class and a sport class status. Before a sambo athlete is assigned a sport class, they must undergo an evaluation process to confirm the presence of an eligible impairment and to verify that their impairment meets the minimum criteria:

The athlete must have a clinically diagnosed underlying health condition (e.g., Stargardt disease, retinitis pigmentosa, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma), affecting the structure or function of the eye, optic nerve, optic chiasm, post-chiasmatic visual pathways, or the visual cortex of the brain, which has resulted in reduced visual function or no vision at all, even with the best possible refractive or optical correction.

The athlete must also meet the Minimum Impairment Criteria (MIC) for visual impairment. These criteria can be found in the FIAS Classification Rules.

Classification Rules in Sambo for Blind and Visually Impaired Athletes

In the first stage of classification, the presence of an eligible underlying condition is determined based on an analysis of diagnostic information provided to FIAS by the athlete’s National Federation. Athletes, through their National Federation, must submit a completed Medical Diagnostic Form (MDF) to FIAS, along with all supporting medical documentation.

Medical Diagnostic Form (MDF)

Subsequent stages of athlete evaluation are conducted in person with the athlete by a Classification Panel consisting of certified FIAS classifiers. The assessment is carried out using and based on ophthalmological medical diagnostic methods and the evaluation of visual function.

Classification Form for Athletes with Visual Impairment

Allocation to Sport Classes

The sport class is determined by the functional ability of sambo athletes to perform the actions required in sambo that are aimed at achieving a sporting result — winning a bout — taking into account the specific nature of their visual impairment. This is not an assessment of the athlete’s skill level, but rather of their functional ability to perform these actions.

Physical and intellectual abilities required for athletes to achieve results in sambo. Theoretical model.

The result in sambo is determined by the physical and intellectual abilities required to execute effective throws, grips, and holds, control distance, and analyze the opponent’s actions. Differences in reaction time, spatial control, and the ability to maintain balance under vestibular load have a significant influence on the outcome of the bout.

The functional capacity of vision influences the technique and dynamics of the bout. Vision plays an important role in perceiving the opponent’s actions, orienting one’s own body, and maintaining balance, which in turn determines the effectiveness and/or methods of performing technical actions.

Vision plays an important role in perceiving the opponent’s actions, orienting one’s own body, and maintaining balance, which in turn determines the effectiveness of technical actions.

To ensure equal conditions and minimize the impact of visual impairment on the outcome of a bout, athletes are divided into two sport classes: SVI-1 and SVI-2.

In the SVI-1 sport class, blind sambists compete. These are athletes with the most severe visual impairments, including those who are totally blind and those with residual vision. In this sport class, athletes compete wearing special helmets with inserts in the eye area to protect against accidental blows and collisions, as well as to standardize the conditions for competition.

Medical Review

A request for a medical review must be submitted by the National Federation if an athlete who has previously been assigned a sport class experiences a change in the nature or degree of visual impairment, or if there is a need for a reassessment of an athlete who was previously found not to meet classification requirements (Not Eligible).

For example, a Medical Review request would be appropriate where the effect of surgery, a new medication or device, or some other medical procedure has resulted in changes to an Athlete’s ability to execute the specific tasks and activities relevant to SAMBO. A request may also be appropriate where an Athlete has a new Underlying Health Condition.

Medical Review Form

Classification Master List

FIAS maintains a Classification Master List of athletes, which includes name, gender, country, sport class, and sport class status. This list includes athletes eligible to participate in international competitions. Any athlete not included in the World Classification List must undergo the classification evaluation process.

Classification Master List

Protests

The rules for submitting protests regarding an athlete’s sport class can be found in the Classification Rules, and the protest submission form can be downloaded here:

Classification Protest Form for Sambo Athletes with Visual Impairment

For all questions related to classification, please contact us via email: newmoscow80@yandex.ru