Germany, May 8, 2015: The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has announced the full programme of world class speakers for October’s VISTA 2015 conference, which will take place in Girona, Spain, covering the theme “securing the future of young para-athletes”.
Each day during the conference, which will run between 7-10 October attracting an anticipated number of over 200 experts and sport specialists from around the world, there will be one keynote and a number of invited symposia, oral presentations and poster sessions.
Following the Opening Ceremony on Wednesday, 7 October, the first keynote speaker on Thursday, 8 October, will be IOC Medical Commission Games Group member Margo Mountjoy. She will present “Youth Athlete Development: Recommendations from the IOC”.
Friday’s keynote speaker will be Jennifer Mactavish, the winner of the 2015 IPC Scientific Award. The Canadian has been chosen for the award in recognition of her role in the successful re-inclusion of intellectually impaired athletes into the Paralympic Games. She will expand on how collaborative research that informed the evidence based classification system for athletes with intellectual impairment led into an array of considerations essential for enabling broad based sport participation.
The final keynote speaker will be David Sanz Rivas, Scientific Director Royal Spanish Tennis Federation, who will cover `Career pathways in wheelchair tennis: from grassroots to elite performance’.
Dr. Peter Van de Vliet, the IPC’s Scientific and Medical Director, said: “We are delighted to announce the VISTA 2015 programme five months out from the event.
“This is the first time in a number of years we have held the event outside of Bonn, and to cover this year’s theme of “securing the future of young para-athletes” we have assembled a stellar list of speakers, invited symposia and other speakers. Over 100 abstracts were received and I would like to thank all abstract submitters for their excellent input.
“Each edition this conference goes from strength-to-strength and I am confident that the combination of Girona and a great line-up of speakers will ensure this is the best yet.”
Registration for VISTA 2015 is now open at www.vista2015.com and organisers are currently offering an early bird discount of 300 EUR, a 15 per cent discount on the listed price, to anyone who books before 15 June 2015.
VISTA is designed to promote and advance the mission, goals, objectives and reputation of the IPC and provides a platform for the academic world to meet with athletes and professional experts in the field of sport for athletes with an impairment.
It provides a forum for exchange on the latest information, research and expertise related to the Paralympic Movement and promotes cross-disciplinary interaction among sport scientists, athletes, coaches, administrators and the media.
It was first held in 1993 and has since developed a global reputation for acting as a platform for debate, discussion and dialogue on key issues relating to the growth of the Paralympic Movement. —- IPC
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