Concept of Classification and Divisioning in Sports

Classification and divisioning are the two processes used in disability sport to make competition even and fair by grouping athletes together — much as mainstream sport groups competitors by age, gender or weight. The aim in each case is to reduce the effect that a variable such as age, gender, weight or ability would otherwise have on the result, so that the outcome reflects genuine sporting merit.

The two terms belong to two different movements:

• Classification is the grouping process associated with the Paralympics and para-athletes. It assigns athletes to categories based on their type of disability.
• Divisioning is the grouping process associated with the Special Olympics. It is a performance-based system that groups athletes by their skill level. …