Para swimming has been in the Parapan American Games since 1999. Since the last 20 years, countless stories have been written, many records have been broken and thousands of people have enjoyed the competitions in which Para swimmers gave their best for a place in the podium.

In this press release you will find categories used to make the competition fair and make victories based exclusively in Para swimmers skills and tactical and mental abilities.

In Para swimming, swimmers are classified according to their impairment and its level. There are currently three types of impairments: physical, mental and intellectual. Each one is divided as follows:

Physical Impairment:

There are 10 classes depending on the swimmers’ physical impairment. These are numbered from 1 to 10. Activity limitations are higher when the number is lower. This limitations include swimmers with coordination problems in all four limbs (S1) up to swimmers with one leg amputated under the knee (S10).

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Visual Impairment

Based on the International Blind Sports Federation, this type of impairment classifies swimmers in three categories, from S11 to S13.

• An athlete in class S11 cannot see and is considered completely blind. Swimmers must use opaque goggles during the competition.
• In class 12, athletes can see clearly at two meters what can be seen, in regular conditions, at 60 meters (2/60).
• In class 13, visual capacity is higher than 2/60 but not over 6/60.

Intellectual Impairment

The S14 class is composed by athletes whose impairment  implies difficulties to identify patterns or react quickly.

Now that you know more about this Para sport: have you met Lima 2019 Ambassador Dunia Felices? 2017 was a great year for her, because the won the silver at the Para Swimming Open in Colombia, and the gold at the National Championship. This year, her main motivation is to win a medal in the Pan American Games.

You cannot miss Para swimming competitions in Lima 2019!  The tournament will be held at the new VIDENA Aquactic center. Tickets will be available soon.