50 days to start of IPC Athletics World Championships in New Zealand – chance to showcase Paralympic sport in this country

There are just 50 days to go until January's IPC Athletics World Championships in Christchurch, New Zealand, and event organisers believe that this event will propel Paralympic sport in New Zealand to a new level.

In what will be the last major gathering of international athletes before the London 2012 Paralympic Games, 1055 athletes from 79 countries are set to gather in Christchurch.

Fiona Pickering, Chief Executive Officer of Paralympics New Zealand, said that her organisation was looking forward to hosting the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships.

"I cannot wait for this event to begin and I believe it will be an excellent springboard for Paralympic sport in New Zealand. It will showcase what Paralympic sport is all about and will certainly excite New Zealanders.
“There are still some people in this country that do not consider that Paralympic sport is at the same level as Olympic sport. I encourage all these people to attend the event and see for themselves the level at which all these high performance athletes perform at.”

By hosting the Athletics World Championships, Pickering sees this as an opportunity to shift the attitudes and perceptions towards disabled people.

"It's exciting that New Zealand is staging this event so close to London 2012. The athletes will be looking at putting in some incredible performances in Christchurch to prove a point ahead of the Games and we are very excited about seeing them compete against each other."

A host of big name athletes are set to compete in Christchurch including South African `Blade Runner' Oscar Pistorius, Irish sprinter and `Fastest Paralympian" on Earth Jason Smyth and American Paralympic gold medalists Jessica Galli and April Holmes.

Fiona Pickering said: "There are obviously a lot of international names to look out for in Christchurch. Oscar Pistorius is clearly the stand-out name as he has gained a lot of media attention over the last two years.

"At the World Championships I think there will be a lot of aspirations to beat Oscar and that will make for a really good race. It would be a real showcase for the event. But there will be some other great races as well.
"In addition to the big international names there are nine Kiwis to look out for - we are expecting some great performances from New Zealand athletes and we hope that the New Zealand public will really get behind these athletes at the event," Pickering added.

"We're hoping the crowds will turn out for this special event and have priced tickets at just $10 each to make it as affordable as possible."

Tickets to see the IPC Athletics World Championships, which runs from 21-30 January 2011, are now on-sale and can be purchased from www.ticketdirect.co.nz

For the latest news about the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships, please visit www.ipcathleticsworldchamps.com

For more information about Paralympics New Zealand please visit www.paralympics.org.nz