Oceania Paralympic Championships Fact Sheet
Athletics
Dates of Competition
Track and Field - Evenings of May 10 - 13, under lights
10,000m Wheelchair road race - Morning of May 16
Venue
The Track and Field competition will be held at Arafura Athletics Stadium, Abala Rd, Marrara.
This facility is a fully equipped athletic track and field centre with photo-finish electric timing.
There are large change rooms and amenities at the stadium. Athletes will have full access to these facilities for training before and during the games except for competition times.
Arafura Stadium is fully accessible.
Competition Program
The following events will be contested.
Ambulant: 100m (M&F), 200m (M&F), 400m (M&F), 800m (M&F), 1500(M&F), 5000m (M), Discus(M&F), Shot Put (M&F), Javelin (M&F), Long Jump (M&F), High Jump (M&F)
Entry Standards
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The minimum starting height for High Jump is 1m.
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All Ambulant athletes entering the OPC 800m must be able to complete the event within 3:32.00.
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All Ambulant athletes entering the OPC 1500m must be able to complete the event within 8:00.00.
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Reflecting the Paralympic schedule of events, the OPC 5000m is open to only male ambulant athletes who must be able to complete the event within 30:00.0.
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With the exception of the qualification times listed above, the remaining OPC Ambulant events do not have qualification times/distances.
Wheelchair: 100m (M&F), 200m (M&F), 400m (M&F), 800m (M&F), 1500m (M&F), 10,000m road (M&F)
Entry Standards
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All Wheelchair athletes entering the 800m must be able to complete the event within 4:00.00.
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All Wheelchair athletes entering the 1500m must be able to complete the event within 7:30.00.
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All Wheelchair athletes entering the 10,000m road race must be able to complete the event within 45:00.00.
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With the exception of the qualification times listed above, the remaining OPC Wheelchair events do not have qualification times/distances.
A draft competition program is available on the Track and Field section of the Arafura Games website (www.arafuragames.nt.gov.au). The final program will be available following the close of entries.
Classification
Athlete classification will be conducted, prior to the event, on 8 - 9 May at the Arafura Stadium for physical impairments and at the Royal Darwin Hospital for vision impairments.
Australian Athletes who do not have a confirmed National level Classification will be required in Darwin prior to Sunday May 8.
Athletes from outside Australia who do not have a confirmed International Classification may also be required in Darwin prior to May 8.
Athletes will be notified if they are required to attend classification and their appointment time following the closure of entries.
Classes contested
Ambulant: Classes - 11, 12, 13, 35, 36, 37, 38, 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46
Wheelchair Classes Track - 34, 51, 52, 53, 54
Wheelchair Classes Field - 32, 33, 34, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58
Entry
Entry to OPC events closes on 10 April 2009.
Online accreditation is a 2 step process and must be commenced immediately.
Please visit the Arafura Games website and click on the blue box reading 'start your accreditation here' to register.
Minimum age for Oceania Paralympic Championships
Athletes must be 15 years of age by 31 December 2009.
Competition Format
The competition will be conducted under IAAF rules and also IPC Rules where applicable.
The Oceania Paralympic Championships will be conducted in a multi-disability format. Athletes will compete in Ambulant or Wheelchair events.
Progression through to finals and the awarding of medals is calculated against the percentage of the World Record for the individual athlete’s classification. The percentage calculated is then ranked and athletes progress to finals or win medals accordingly.
Awarding of Medals
All athletes with a disability will be eligible for Arafura Games medals. OPC medals will be awarded to athletes from OPC member nations to a maximum of two (2) athletes per country per event.
Records
Only athletes holding a current IPC License will be eligible to have their results considered for World and Regional rankings and records. Athletes should contact their National Paralympic Committee for further information.
Arafura Games able-bodied events
Athletes with a disability may enter Arafura (able-bodied) events provided they enter the same OPC event if that event is on the OPC program (eg 100m Arafura & 100m OPC) and meet the minimum qualification criteria set by the event organisers.
Qualification standards for Arafura Games events are available on the Arafura Games website. Athletes with a disability may enter non OPC events on the Arafura program as an open athlete (eg Hammer Throw) and must compete using open weights, provided they meet the qualification criteria.
Managers Meeting
A Team Managers Meeting will be held up to 48 hours prior to the start of competition. Details of the Managers Meeting and selected motels will be available following close of entries on April 10.
Accommodation
Arafura Games has a central accommodation booking service. Details are available on the Arafura Games website.
Transfers and transportation
Airport transfers and venue transportation are provided free of charge to all accredited athletes and officials and is fully accessible.
Cost
There is no entry fee for the Oceania Paralympic Championships. Athletes are responsible for travel to Darwin, meals, accommodation, visa costs and other incidentals.
Visa Information
Information on Visa requirements is available at the Arafura Games website. The organising committee are unable to provide official letters of invitation or assistance to athletes who do not hold a relevant visa.
Website
The Athletics section on the website will be updated regularly please continue to check this in the lead up to the Games.
For further information about the Oceania Paralympic Championships Athletics competition please contact:
Tim Matthews - Australian Paralympic Committee
Email: tim.matthews@paralympic.org.au
Tel: +61 3 9614 6800