Badminton is a sport for all, accessible to everyone no matter gender, age, cultural background, ability or disability.
Para badminton has been part of the Special Olympics World Summer Games since 1995 and is now recognised as a Paralympic sport, introduced for the first time at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) recognises the Badminton World Federation (BWF) as the world governing body for Para badminton.
Badminton Australia works with our state and territory associations to promote and develop Para badminton, and partners with disability organisations and community groups to promote participation and learning opportunities.
Para Badminton Sport Classes
To play para-badminton, athletes must have an eligible impairment and meet the minimum impairment criteria as set by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) for that classification.
Para-badminton is open to athletes with a physical impairment who compete in men’s and women’s singles, men’s and women’s doubles and mixed doubles across 6 different sport classes:
Wheelchair Sport Classes – WH1 and WH2
Standing Sport Classes – SL3, SL4 and SU5
Short Stature Sport Class – SH6
Classification
To be placed into a sport class athletes must complete the classification process. This dictates the level of competition they can enter – local, state, national or international. An overview of the Para Badminton classification process can be accessed HERE.
For a summary guide on eligible impairments and more detail on the different sport classes CLICK HERE. More information on the minimal impairment criteria for each of the sport classes is described in the BWF Classification Regulations.
To register your interest in Classification, email Badminton Australia at para.classification@badminton.org.au . Below are also some additional resources.
Start Playing
Players who compete in wheelchairs and those with the most significant impairments compete on a half court with all remaining classes and doubles events using the full court. A match consists of the best of three games. A game is won by the first to score 21 points.
We recommend you contact your state or territory badminton organisation to find suitable social or competitive environments for you to start playing para-badminton. If your state or territory contact details are not listed below, please contact para@badminton.org.au
