Margaret Talbot Appointed as Chairperson of IPC Education Committee

ICSSPE´s President Margaret Talbot has been appointed to chair the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Education Committee, which provides advice and consultation to the IPC Governing Board on matters relating to Paralympic Education.

“I feel very privileged to be appointed to this position, but also very excited, since it brings together my commitment to sports equity and to education”, says Talbot.

The main goals of the Education Committee are to:

• create high-quality Paralympic Education resources for global implementation;
• encourage Paralympic Education Programmes to be implemented worldwide;
• provide trainings for the implementation of Paralympic Education activities;
• promote scholarly research activities and studies about the Paralympic Education Programmes.

Talbot was nominated for this position because of her “extensive experience and knowledge in the field of sport and physical education”, states Bart Schell, Education and Client Services Manager at IPC. As Chairperson, she will “lead the activities of the Education Committee to provide recommendations for the continuous development of IPC educational material and to support the implementation of an education programme on a permanent basis for the international community”. Talbot´s personal commitment to the position is to “make progress towards building effective and sustainable links between Paralympic sport and mainstream education systems. This, in turn, should help to establish widespread appreciation and respect for the achievements of Paralympic athletes, and inspire children and young people, whether able bodied or with disabilities, to emulate them”, she says.

Both ICSSPE and IPC are convinced that this appointment will further extend the already strong relationship and extensive collaboration that occurs between the two organisations. An upcoming example of the close cooperation between the two is the International Convention on Science, Education and Medicine in Sport (ICSEMIS), to be held in Glasgow in 2012, before the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London. Moreover, “more effective support from ICSSPE member organisations for IPC educational and scientific activities and an extended area of interest for the pedagogic and scientific communities within the ICSSPE membership”, will be one of the goals Talbot is going to pursue in her new position.

For more information about the IPC and its Education Committee, please click here