The Paralympics are often celebrated as not just a showcase of extraordinary athletes, but as a victory for inclusion. But behind the medals and triumphs lies a troubling question: who gets to compete, and who is left behind?
Andy Small was born at 1lb 6oz and was given a 5% chance of survival. In the Tokyo Paralympics in 2021, Andy became a gold medallist. Six months later, he was off funding entirely.
Andy Small is a British wheelchair racer who won his gold in the T33 100m in Tokyo, which was the only race for his class. Three years later in Paris, that number became zero, meaning there was no event for the T33 class. The T33 classification in para-athletics is for wheelchair athletes with coordination impairments due to conditions such as cerebral palsy, and have more severe impairments than T34 athletes.
As the “Covid Games,” Tokyo 2020 inevitably saw reduced participation, particularly among high-dependency groups like the T33 class, a category with athletes who may require personal assistance at events. Despite these challenges, five athletes lined up for the T33 men’s 100m final. Three Team GB athletes raced, with Andy Small taking the gold, Harri Jenkins the bronze, and James Freeman narrowly missing out on the podium, placing fourth.
Ten weeks after Small won gold, he was told that the event would not be taking place in Paris in 2024. Steve Small, Andy Small’s father, said: “At the homecoming reception after Tokyo, Boris Johnson came in and said they will all get much more funding because of the achievements. Within six months, Andy was axed from the funding program.”
It was as if Small had been made redundant. An employee that had exceeded all targets, received a promotion, and then a few months later had been laid off.
This was a result of the World Para-athletics (WPA) decision to remove the T33 100m from the 2024 Paris Paralympics. The WPA is responsible for the competition programming of athletics at the Paralympics, and is governed by the IPC Athlete Classification Code and Standards. The WPA said: “The T33 sport class has not been removed entirely from the Paralympic Games program
me. Both male and female athletes in the T33 class were eligible to compete at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games in several medal events. This included the men’s 100m T34, men’s 800m T34, women’s 100m T34 and women’s 800m T34 and 4x100m Universal Relay.”
Given only a 5% survival chance, Andy Small defied the odds to make the Tokyo start line, let alone win it. With reigning world and Paralympic champion Ahmad Almutairi racing against him, Small’s victory came as a shock to the world. It would have made the perfect story. As one of only two British wheelchair athletes to secure a gold medal in Tokyo, fans expected Small’s achievement to have garnered greater recognition and celebration, especially given the context of the games being affected by the challenges of the pandemic.
However, Small’s achievements never reached the forefront of UK Paralympic coverage. Fellow finalist James Freeman said: “We all got given a book at the end of Tokyo with highlights of what happened. Andy was not in a single photo. Other wheelchair athletes who didn’t win gold got a picture. But Andy didn’t, which really baffled me.”
Andy Small claimed gold in Tokyo with a time of 17.73 seconds, which he won with his blistering start. However, there was no longer race for the endurance athletes. In comparison to this, the T54 classification has six track races ranging from the 100m to the 5000m, which allows athletes to demonstrate versatility across a range of distances.
With over 10,000 infants being diagnosed with cerebral palsy each year globally, many of whom may qualify as T33 athletes, the lack of a clear pathway to the pinnacle of the sport has denied opportunities to young athletes.
Youth participation levels have dropped, and without an end goal to aspire towards, these levels may continue with the same trajectory. In 2018 there were nine athletes, u23 or younger, that registered a time for the T33 100m. This number has dropped to one in 2024 Freeman said: “It affected a lot of us in a big way, especially for the younger athletes coming in there is now no pathway to achieve their dreams. I have parents come up to me and ask me what is out there for my child? And I have to be honest with them and tell them nothing.”
The Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association (CPISRA) have been vocal on this issue and released a statement in 2021: “As a board and organisation, we remain hugely saddened that the Paris 2024 is unable to accommodate these and other events.”
By winning gold in Tokyo, Small elevated his status as a role model within the para community. “When Andy came home, we were at the Hilton hotel and Andy was talking to families outside,” Small’s father said. “Parents were sharing things with him, telling him you’ve given me hope for my child.” However, the decision to remove all T33 races has removed much of that hope. “There was an adaptation needed at Tokyo. Due to the nature of Andy’s class, it was inevitable the turnout wouldn’t be as great as previous years. We all feel very let down by the IPC.”
As displayed in 2021, a T33 100m takes less than 30 seconds to complete, which has led to athletes and supporters to argue it could easily be put into the paralympic schedule. However, they believe the fight should not be to simply get just the one race back. “At least one middle distance race should be on the timetable for the T33 athletes. It would have never been expected of athletes such a Mo Farah to drop down to the 100m, so why should it be any different for us?” Freeman said.
The only option that was given to the T33 athletes, should they have wanted to compete in Paris, was to move up to the T34 class, which would have been a huge step up for the athletes. The T34 class is for athletes with less severe impairments than the T33 athletes, which means that they have more functional movement in the upper body. “It is like putting a middleweight boxer against a heavyweight. It would be a mismatch,” Small’s father said.
The WPA said:” Prior to Paris, in an effort to further develop the T333 sport class, World Para Athletics (WPA) had included separate T33 events on the Paris 2023 and Kobe 2024 Para Athletics World Championships programme. However, due to the low number of athletes’ entries, the T33 track events did not meet the minimum criteria to be included in the final event programme for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, and so T33 athletes were instead given the opportunity to compete in the T34 class medal events.
Chaiwat Rattana won the T34 100m at the 2024 Paralympics in a time of 14.76 seconds, almost three seconds quicker than that of Andy Small’s time in Tokyo. With the IPC and WPA emphasising the importance of inclusion, these T33 athletes feel they have been incredibly let down.
Freeman narrowly missed out on a medal in Tokyo, which was his first Paralympic games. An 800 and 1500m specialist, Freeman had hope of one day racing in his favoured events. “We were all so proud afterwards, I felt incredible. And then it just got cut, and everything we had been promised just didn’t really happen,”
Coming home from Tokyo, Freeman had a realistic chance of receiving funding from British Athletics. 4th place in his first Paralympic would likely have resulted in him being placed on the Paralympic Podium Potential tier of funding. However, after the removal of the T33 class, British Athletics said they were removing funding for all T33 athletes. “I’ve never received any funding from GB. I’ve received about £500 in total but I’ve never come close to be able to do this sport for a living.” With Para-athletics being an expensive sport, this funding would have been huge for his career. “For runners, if you break a spike, you can just buy a new one. Most wheelchair racers don’t have a spare tyre lying about.”
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The most disappointing part for Freeman was the lack of communication from both the IPC and Paralympics GB. “What hurt me the most was that both Harri and Andy received calls from GB saying the class has been cut. Two years later, I’m still waiting for that call.”
Since the decision to remove the T33 category in its entirety, James has continued to compete across Europe in smaller competitions. Last year, James broke the 800m European record. “Team Australia were really pleased for me. Team Canada were really pleased for me. Not one person from Team GB congratulated me.” Freeman stated that the lack of recognition from British Athletics has contributed to his decision as of late to take a step back from both training and racing. When approached for a response, British Athletics declined to respond.
Freeman went one better in a race earlier this year at Stoke Mandeville and broke the 1500m world record, and stated that he received no credit of any sorts from British Athletics until he contacted them himself. “I broke a world record and apart from my family and teammates at the Weir Archer Academy, no one acknowledged it.” When world records are broken in other para-athletic classifications, British Athletics and mainstream media often celebrate these achievements. Yet, T33 athletes seem to be excluded from this level of recognition. Why is this the case? The disparity raises serious questions about the visibility placed on T33 events, and highlights an issue in how different classes within para-sports are promoted and valued.
The lack of care given to the athletes from both the IPC and British Athletics has led to many athletes leaving the sport completely. In 2018, 13 British T33 athletes recorded a 100m time. In 2024, that number was just four. Freeman said: “Breaking a world record sounds really impressive but it didn’t feel that way. I was the only one in my class who attended the race. What has happened is that everyone in my class has just stopped racing and given up.”
With so much time and commitment given the to the sport, it can be incredibly challenging to leave the sport. “I’ve missed my mates wedding because I was in Switzerland competing. I don’t regret it but it’s sad that we no longer have a major championship to aim for,” Freeman said.
Olivia Gallagher is a female T33 athlete. Born 24 weeks premature, Olivia the faces a unique and challenging situation, and one that is different to fellow T33 athletes Andy Small and James Freeman. As a female T33 athlete, she has never had the opportunity to compete in the Paralympics because there has never been a women’s T33 event. In 2018, the IPC said there were too few world-ranked female T33 athletes, which meant that there was no race for these athletes in Tokyo. This has resulted in many T33 athletes stepping away from the sport.
As a result of the lack of opportunities afforded to her from both British Athletics and the IPC, Olivia has made the decision to transfer to Ireland, and focus on field events. “Ireland have a much smaller number of athletes in their team, I’ve already received more support from Athletics Ireland than I did in ten years with British Athletics,” Olivia said. “Ireland is willing to invest in me and unfortunately GB are not. I’ve tried and tried but there has been nothing.” Being a self-funded athlete, this support is perfect for propelling Olivia to the next level. British Athletics declined the opportunity to respond.
Born with a hearing impairment, Olivia had surgery to give her cochlear implants. “I had the surgery in 2019 and bearing in mind I had done the sport for six years before, that was the first time I heard the start gun.” With this understandably affecting Olivia’s start, she prefers the middle-distance events, and is looking to break the 800m world record, alongside develop her skills on the field. With the F33 Shot Put being included in the 2024 Paralympics, it signifies a pathway for Olivia for this Paralympic cycle.
The decision to omit T33 races from the Paralympic Games will have an impact that will last at least a generation. “We could have fielded a full start line in Tokyo but the IPC decided not to include us. It meant that many of the athletes walked away,” Olivia said.
With the IPC wanting more representation for not just female athletes, but for athletes with high support needs as well, the T33 category could have been the perfect class to get behind. Elevating the T33 classification would not only increase the representation of underrepresented groups but also aligns with the IPC’s goals of promoting diversity and inclusion across all levels of para-athletics.
The IPC currently have no plans to reintroduce the T33 classification, but given the impact on a generation of athletes, perhaps it is time for a rethink?
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