Athletes Without Limits US Team Trip to 2023 Virtus Global Games (France)
June 4, 2023 - June 10, 2023
In June 2023 more than one thousand of the best athletes from around the world will compete in the quadrennial Virtus Global Games, hosted in Vichy, France for seven days of elite multi-sport competition. The Games is the World Championships for athletes with an intellectual impairment in the following sports: Basketball, Cycling, Equestrian (new), Futsal, Judo (new), Karate (new), Rowing, Swimming, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Tennis and Track & Field/Athletics, with additional demonstration events.
ATHLETE UPDATES:
Download the new PDF Event Overview just released by the French organizers July 2022!
US ATHLETE INTEREST FORM:
Interested athletes should complete the form below and we’ll let you know when new information is available:
US TEAM QUALIFICATION INFORMATION
More detailed qualification guidelines for Athletes Without Limits U.S. National Teams competing at the 2023 Games will be posted after we receive the minimum qualifying standards from event organizers.
Eligibility: The 2023 Virtus Global Games will set a competitive schedule across three Virtus eligibility groups. Learn more about the eligibility groups and criteria for US athletes on Athletes Without Limits Eligibility page.
- Virtus II1: Athletes with intellectual disability*
Athletes with an IQ of 75 or lower, Significant limitations in Adaptive Behavior and onset prior to age 18. (Also called S-14 in Paralympic Swimming, T-20 in Paralympic Track & Field, Class 11 in Paralypmic/ITTF Table Tennis, and P20 in World Taekwondo.)
- Virtus II2: Athletes with intellectual disability and significant additional impairment
This group includes most athletes with Down Syndrome and others with intellectual disability who have additional (physical) impairment.
- Virtus II3: Athletes with autism (IQ 76 or higher or high Adaptive)
Virtus Trial group for athletes with Autism who do not meet the IQ and/or Adaptive Behavior criteria used for the II1 group.
*Note that in the three Paralympic sports (Swimming, Table Tennis and Track & Field) that are open to athletes in the Virtus II1-Intellectual Impairment group, the event is sanctioned by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and a qualifier toward Paralympic Team selection.
Qualification Times:
As of July 2022, minimum qualification times for sports that require them (swimming, track & field) have not yet been posted for the 2023 Global Games.
In the mean time athletes and their coaches can review the 2019 Global Games qualifying times and results below for an idea of the competitive level of Virtus World Championships.
- 2019 Global Games SWIM Qualifying Times (For reference)
2019 Global Games SWIM Results - 2019 Global Games TRACK & FIELD Qualifying Times (For reference)
2019 Global Games TRACK & FIELD Results - 2019 Global Games Results (All Sports)
Learn more about the event on the Official Games Website: www.gg2023.org
