(1) Analysis of the German Paralympic training centres for furthering both elite and young Paralympic athletes

Since 2009, 19 Paralympic training centres have been established in Germany in the disciplines of Para athletics, Para swimming, Para cycling, Para table tennis, Para wheelchair basketball, Para goalball, Para sitting volleyball, Para alpine skiing, Para Nordic skiing and Para ice hockey.

Paralympic training centres are selected locations which provide daily training for A, B and C squads as well as a squad of prospective young sporting talent. The prerequisite for recognition as a Paralympic training centre is a concentration of athletes in a specific discipline in the catchment area of the…

Girls on the Move

2005 bis 2008

 

(2) Demands and coping processes in young Paralympic sport taking into consideration the need to reconcile school education and elite sport for furthering both elite and young Paralympic athletes

Young elite athletes are faced with the challenge of satisfying the requirements of elite sport while, at the same time, meeting the demands of a school education. In Germany, in order to deal with this kind of dual career, elite sports schools were established in the 1990s, although for the most part the pupils were from Olympic sports; young athletes from Paralympic sports were significantly underrepresented.