The IBSF Para Sport European Championships are the official European championship events for para bobsleigh, organized by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF). The championships are open to European athletes with physical impairments and are held annually at rotating venues. They are the first continental championships in the discipline.
| Sport | Bobsleigh |
|---|---|
| First season | 2017 |
| Organizing body | International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation |
| Competitors | Athletes with physical impairments |
| Countries | Various |
| Website | ibsf.org |
| Highest governing body | International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation |
|---|---|
| First played | Early 2000s |
| Characteristics | |
| Equipment | Monobob sled, mechanical launcher |
| Venue | Ice tracks |
| Presence | |
| Olympic | Not yet included |
| Paralympic | Targeting 2026 Winter Paralympics |
The championships serve as the highest level of continental competition for para sliding sports. They play a critical role in the campaign for inclusion in the Paralympic Games, with the IBSF aiming for full recognition by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) for future editions along with the IBSF Para Sport World Championships and the IBSF Para Sport World Cup events.[1]
History of the sport
editPara bobsleigh is an adapted discipline of bobsleigh designed for athletes with physical impairments. It features solo competition in modified monobob sleds, raced down ice tracks at speeds exceeding 130 km/h, with athletes experiencing forces of up to 5G in corners.[2]
The sport emerged in the early 2000s, with athletes such as Aaron Lanningham and Gary Kuhl completing successful runs in Park City, Utah. Kuhl notably competed against able-bodied athletes in America Cup races.[3]
In 2010, the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) formally endorsed para bobsleigh, establishing a Para Sport Committee to oversee its development and advocate for Paralympic inclusion.[4]
The first standardized para monobob sled was developed by Renzo Podar and driven by Swiss Paralympic champion Heinz Frei.[5] The inaugural international competition, the Prince Kropotkin Cup, was held in Sigulda, Latvia in 2013.[6]
Equipment and format
editPara bobsleigh uses a single-person sled known as a monobob, adapted for seated starts and hand steering. Mechanical launchers were introduced to simulate the running start used in able-bodied bobsleigh, ensuring competitive fairness.[7]
Athletes compete individually, and races are timed to the hundredth of a second. The sport emphasizes precision, control, and upper-body strength.
History of the European Championships
editThe inaugural IBSF Para Sport European Championships were held in January 2017 in Oberhof, Germany, a year after the inaugural World Championships, featuring 19 athletes from 9 nations.[8] The event marked the first formal European continental competition for para bobsleigh athletes. The championships have never to date featured para skeleton.
Medalists
editBobsleigh
editThe first IBSF Para Sport European Championships event was held in 2017 and has been held annually ever since, with the 2020 event actually being held in December 2019. Three sliders; Jonas Frei of Switzerland, Corie Mapp of Great Britain and Arturs Klots of Latvia have won the championship twice as of 2025, with Mapp's seven podium finishes the record for a single slider.
Each championship is in the monobob format.
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
2017  Oberhof[9]January 2017 | Arturs Klots Latvia | Lauris Zutis Latvia | Corie Mapp Great Britain |
2018  Innsbruck[10]January 2018 | Alvils Brants Latvia | Corie Mapp Great Britain | Guro Konstanse Fronsdal Norway |
2019  St. Moritz[11]February 2019 | Christopher Stewart Switzerland | Nikolai Johann Germany | Sebastian Westin Sweden |
| 2020 Oberhof[12] December 2019* | Corie Mapp Great Britain | Christopher Stewart Switzerland | Arturs Klots Latvia |
2021  La Plagne[13]March 2021 | Sebastian Westin Sweden | Corie Mapp Great Britain | Christopher Stewart Switzerland |
| 2022 St. Moritz[14] March 2022 | Jonas Frei Switzerland | Corie Mapp Great Britain | Nikolai Johann Germany |
| 2023 Innsbruck[15] January 2023 | Arturs Klots Latvia | Corie Mapp Great Britain | Nikolai Johann Germany |
| 2024 Lillehammer[16] March 2024 | Corie Mapp Great Britain | Christopher Stewart Switzerland | Arturs Klots Latvia |
| 2025 Sigulda[17] January 2025 | Jonas Frei Switzerland | Hermann Ellmauer Austria | Arturs Klots Latvia |
| 2026 Sigulda January 2026 |
Medal table
edit* Host nation (IBSF)
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Switzerland (SUI) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| 2 | Latvia (LAT) | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| 3 | Great Britain (GBR) | 2 | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| 4 | Sweden (SWE) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 5 | Germany (GER) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 6 | Austria (AUT) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Norway (NOR) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (7 entries) | 9 | 9 | 9 | 27 | |
Multiple medalists
edit| No. | Athlete | Nation | Years | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Corie Mapp | Great Britain |
2017- | 2 | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| 2 | Arturs Klots | Latvia |
2017- | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| 3 | Jonas Frei | Switzerland |
2022- | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Christopher Stewart | Switzerland |
2019- | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | Sebastian Westin | Sweden |
2019- | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Nikolai Johann | Germany |
2019- | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "Para Bobsleigh and Skeleton: Road to Paralympic Inclusion". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ↑ "Para Sport Overview". International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ↑ Gary Kuhl (2010). "Adaptive Bobsledding: Breaking Barriers". USA Bobsled & Skeleton Federation.
- ↑ "IBSF Para Sport Committee". IBSF. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ↑ Heinz Frei (2013). "Engineering the Para Monobob". Swiss Paralympic Journal.
- ↑ "Prince Kropotkin Cup Results". IBSF. Archived from the original on 22 January 2019. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ↑ "Mechanical Launchers in Para Sport". IBSF. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ↑ "IBSF Para Sport European Championships 2017". IBSF. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: 2017 European Para Bobsleigh Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ↑ "IBSF | International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation: Result". www.ibsf.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.