– When I climb, I use my legs, Eva Mol tells news. The Dutchman has para-climbing as his main sport, but would like to start with rowing to increase his endurance, get longer training sessions, and hopefully fulfill his dream of Paralympic participation. As of now, para-climbing is not a Paralympic discipline. Mol was first classified nationally as a PR1 rower, and after the visit to the rowing stadium in Munich during the EC, she has received her international “license”. This means that Mol will in future compete in the same class as, among others, Birgit Skarstein and Israeli Moran Samuel, who have no feeling from the hip down. It creates great confusion towards the system. React news wrote earlier this week about the rule change in Skarstein’s class. In the past there was a class for athletes who can only use their arms and shoulders, but now they are open to athletes with strength in their legs, despite the fact that the regulations have not been changed in writing in any way. It was witnessed during the World Cup in Poznań, Poland earlier this summer. Italian Giacomo Perini participated for the first time in the PR1 class, and set a new world record by almost 20 seconds. The silver winner from the Paralympics, Moran Samuel, is burning with many questions after she heard that a para-climber is ready for the rowing class PR1. JUSTICE: Moran Samuel is a practitioner representative, and is concerned with fair competition. Photo: Synne Sofie Christiansen / news – How much does the use of bones affect a boat? A lot, if you ask me. How will this affect a class that was mainly created for arms and shoulders? Samuel asks news. She emphasizes that she has no ill feelings towards Mol. She has been classified into PR1, and deserves that place as much as anyone else. – I have no debts towards athletes in this class. It’s not about the athletes, but the system. The athletes are classified and given a break. They don’t need to apologize for it, but the international association must think about this, she says further. Equally frustrated, Eva Mol understands the frustration. She herself has experienced the same frustration when her climbing class was opened so that athletes with functional impairment in two parts of the body could participate. Before, there was a requirement for four. PASSION: The summer holidays to Mol were spent in the mountain walls in Switzerland. Photo: @wolleygoesworldwide / PRIVATE – I was very frustrated when that change first came. But what should I do with it? There is probably no one who has the same disability as me, says Mol to news. She is unsure whether the system is good enough. – In an optimal world, there should be more sports classes, she says. Mol has a progressive muscle disease, which means that she has reduced strength in her upper body, arms, legs and fingers. – I can stand upright and walk a bit if I use a prosthesis or crutches, but I usually use a wheelchair. When I row, I can push a little with my legs, but I have so little strength that it’s actually of no use, she says. Her fastest time rowed at 2000 meters is 12 minutes and 21 seconds, about two minutes behind Skarstein’s best time. If it ever happens that she sets new records, she is clear on one thing: – I am very much in favor of leveling the competition. If it were to happen that I break records, I will draw attention to it, because I don’t think it’s fair, says Mol. Eager: Eva Mol started climbing at a young age. When she was 18, it was no longer possible to compete against the disabled. Photo: @wollygoesworldwide / PRIVATE New interpretation Mette Berg, who is an adviser to the Norwegian Sports Confederation, has examined the regulations of the International Rowing Federation after all the confusion in recent days. – We have worked a bit to see if there is anything in writing somewhere, if there are any changes that have been sent out, that have passed us by. As far as we can find out, we have not been made aware of these changes, says Berg. This is also confirmed by Rebecca Morr in the International Rowing Federation to news. – We have been in contact with the Norwegian camp to discuss their questions and concerns, and happily discuss further if they wish. There have not been any changes in any of the three para-rowing sports classes since 2009, writes Morr in an email to news. This is how the classification rule reads. The PR1 class is for rowers who have no or little upper body function. A PR1 rower is able to use power mainly through the use of arms and/or shoulders. These rowers will probably have reduced sitting balance. Athletes who have previously been classified in PR1 have been given that place as a result of the wording of the rule. This year, the rule has been interpreted in a new way, and Berg is surprised by that. – The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has an “athlete code of classification”, which all Paralympic sports are obliged to follow. In that regulation, it is quite clear that changes in the classification system must be notified both to the national special associations and NIF. I am the recipient of such notifications, and I have not received any such type of notification, Berg explains and underlines: – This is not a change in the classification system as I have been told, but it also states that other changes that may have an impact on assignment of class must be notified. And then this will be a question of interpretation. What are other changes? In my world, using your legs when rowing and not using your legs when rowing are two different things. I would say that it is such a big change that the national confederations and IPC must also be informed. In para-rowing there are three classes, in contrast to other sports that have 10 or more different categories. This means that the three classes, which differentiate the functional impairment of each individual athlete, have been difficult to distinguish. The Norwegian camp believes that the international association should stand behind a consultation process before opening up a new interpretation of the rule. That is what the rowing association in Norway is now working on getting through. – We have to see if a formal error has been made. The international association says that it is a question of interpretation, but in the classification system it is stated that all changes that may affect the classification award must be notified, have a consultation deadline and that everyone must be given an opportunity to make comments and proposals for any new changes or wording. It may indicate that it has not been done, says Berg.
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