Objective and parametric methods used in functional classification disabled swimmers

Abstract

AbstractThe recent Olympic Games in London incited much interest in the competition of disabled athletes. Various people connected with swimming, including coaches and athletes, have speculated about the fairness of competitions of disabled athletes. A constant problem are the subjective methods of classification in disabled sport. Originally, athletes with disabilities were classified according to medical diagnosis. Due to the injustice which still affects the competitors, functional classification was created shortly after. In the present review, the authors show the anomalies in the structure of the classification. The presented discovery led to the suggestion to introduce objective methods, thanks to which it would be no longer necessary to rely on the subjective assessment of the classifier. According to the authors, while using objective methods does not completely rule out the possibility of fraud by disabled athletes in the classification process, it would certainly reduce their incidence. Some of the objective methods useful for the classification of disabled athletes are: posturography, evaluation of the muscle parameters, electrogoniometric assessment, surface electromyography, and analysis of kinematic parameters. These methods have provide objective evaluation in the diagnostic sense but only if they are used in tandem. The authors demonstrate the undeniable benefits of using objective methods. Unfortunately, there are not only advantages of such solution, there also several drawbacks to be found. The conclusion of the article is the statement by the authors that it is right to use objective methods which allow to further the most important rule in sport: fair-play.