IPC Looks to Future as it Turns 30

(ATR) The Paralympic Movement will be spending this week celebrating its past while working on its future.

"We have a hugely exciting week planned as we celebrate two significant landmarks in the history of the IPC – our 30th anniversary since formation and our 20th year headquartered in Bonn," International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons said.

"We are thrilled that so many IPC members and key stakeholders can join us in our home city for a series of events that will not only celebrate our achievement to date but also influence the future of the IPC and Paralympic Movement."

About 500 delegates are in Bonn for the week. The first event on the schedule is the two-day IPC Governing Board meeting, which begins on Tuesday.

The IPC on Tuesday will also host a Partners Workshop looking ahead to Tokyo 2020 that will bring together all seven Paralympic Worldwide Partners and three International Partners for the first time.

On Wednesday around 200 experts will attend the IPC’s third annual Media and Marketing Summit. The day-long event will be attended by representatives from the IPC, IOC, United Nations, National Paralympic Committees (NPCs), Agitos Foundation, international federations, commercial partners, broadcasters and social media channels.

The two-day IPC Conference begins on Thursday. Hundreds of guests from IPC member organizations along with Paralympic Games Organizing Committee representatives and partners will take part.

A special gala dinner at Bonn’s Kameha Grand Hotel on Thursday night will mark the IPC’s 30th anniversary. The organization was founded on September 22, 1989 in Dusseldorf, Germany.

The second day of the IPC Conference on Friday is dedicated to the IPC Governance Review which was launched in April 2018. For the first time, IPC members will hear proposals from the IPC Governing Board on suggested changes to the IPC constitution, bylaws and policies ahead of an Extraordinary General Assembly in late 2020.

Friday evening will be highlighted by the 2019 Paralympic Sport and Media Awards, which will recognizethe performances and achievements from the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games.

Nine awards will be presented in total, including Best Female, Best Male, Best Debut and the BP Courage Award.

The 19th IPC General Assembly will take center stage on Saturday and Sunday, giving IPC members the opportunity to discuss and debate policies and procedures. The Organizing Committees for Tokyo 2020, Beijing 2022, Paris 2024 and LA 2028 will also provide an update on preparations for future editions of the Paralympic Games.

New Logo and Look for IPC

The IPC unveiled a redesigned emblem on Sunday, describing it as "part of a wider strategy to make the Paralympic brand more impactful and meaningful to a global audience".

We're feeling bold 😎 Excited to share with everyone the new look 🌟 pic.twitter.com/It9Bx28Mf0

It is the first change to the Agitos, the Paralympic symbol, since it was launched in 2004.

It has been redrawn and recolored, while a new brand narrative – "Change Starts with Sport" – has been created to better communicate the transformational impact the Paralympic Movement has on society and drive the human rights agenda.

"As part of our new brand strategy, we have refreshed our look and developed a clearer narrative that globally positions the IPC vision to make for a more inclusive world through Para sport," Craig Spence, the IPC’s Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, said in a statement.

"Going forward, we will make more of our challenger brand status and the authentic down-to-earth approach that has got us to where we are today. We will be bold in all our activities, disrupting the norm if needed to initiative change. Finally, we will make more of the uplifting stories the Paralympic Movement has to offer and, like our athletes, be relentless in everything that we do."

To complement the redesigned emblem, the IPC will roll out a new range of brand assets in the coming weeks, starting this week in Bonn.

Written by Gerard Farek

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