Guide to the 2024 Paralympics: What are all the classifications?

First held in 1960, the Paralympic Games take place shortly after the Olympic Games, and sees athletes with a range of disabilities compete.

In order to make the playing field as fair as possible, each sport is divided by classifications depending on the severity and type of disability, and we've outlined the main classifications below.

Tanni Grey-Thompson is perhaps Great Britain's most notable Paralympic athlete, winning gold medals at the 1992, 1996, 2000 and 2004 Games, placing first in the TW3 100m in 1992, the T52 800m in 1996, and the T53 100m in 2000 and 2004, winning 11 gold medals in total.

While all the letters and numbers can seem confusing, they're actually quite straightforward. In Gray-Thompson's example above, the T stands for track, the W stands for wheelchair (no longer used) and the number refers to the disability.

Generally speaking - but not always - the higher the number, the less impaired the athlete, and the numbers are split into categories, which we've outlined below. For example, in athletics, the amputee classifications are numbered 42-47, with 47 being less impaired than 42.

Paralympics athletics classifications

Classification	Impairment
T/F11-13	Blindness (11); visually impaired (12-13)
T/F20	Intellectual impairment
T/F31-38	Celebral palsy or other coordination impairments. 31-34 for wheelchair events; 35-38 for running events
F40-41	Dwarfism
T/F42-47	Amputees
T/F51-58	Spinal cord injury or disability
T/F61-64	Athletes with a prosthesis affected by limb deficieny and leg length difference

Paralympics cycling classifications

In cycling, events are classified by male and female (M/F), and then by the type of cycling: Cycling (C), Handbike/handcycling (H), Tricycle (T) and blind/visually impaired (B).

Classification	Impairment
M/WC1-5	Physically impaired but capable of using standard bicycle
M/WH1-5	Lower limb impairment requiring use of hand-operated bike
M/WT1-2	Impairment affect balance, requiring use of tricycle
M/WB	Blind/visually impaired; guided by sighted pilot on tandem bike

Paralympics swimming classifications

Swimming is similar to athletics and cycling in that the classifications are coded by stroke. For example, S (swimming) on its own is either freestyle, butterfly or backstroke; SB is breaststroke and SM is individual medley. Like in athletics, impairments are categorised and the lower the number typically indicates the greater impairment.

Classification	Impairment
S/SB/SM1-10	Physical disability
S/SB/SM11-13	Visual impairment
S/SB/SM14	Intellectual impairment
S/SB/SM15	Hearing impairment