Jan Burns, second left at back, has been appointed as chair of the IPC Classification Compliance and Oversight Committee ©IPC

Professor Jan Burns has been appointed as chair of the International Paralympic Committee's (IPC) Classification Compliance and Oversight Committee, which held its inaugural meeting in the German city of Bonn.

The Committee is tasked with developing and delivering the IPC Classification Code, increasing education and communication about classification and guiding International Federations, replacing the former Classification Committee which was created in 2003.

It was created as part of a new Constitution approved in 2021 and implemented from 2022, and is set to advise the Governing Board on updates related to the Classification Code, which one of the most controversial and debated issues in the Paralympic Movement. 

Members of the Classification Compliance and Oversight Committee were approved by the IPC Nominations Panel, and Burns is its first chair.

She is the academic director of the Centre for Sport, Physical Education and Activity Research at Canterbury University in England, and a member of the Code Review Team drafting the next IPC Classification Code.

Jan Burns is the academic director of the Centre for Sport, Physical Education and Activity Research at Canterbury University ©Canterbury University
Jan Burns is the academic director of the Centre for Sport, Physical Education and Activity Research at Canterbury University ©Canterbury University

Burns claimed it is "a real pivotal time in classification", and identified three key areas of focus.

"The first thing is Code compliance and implementation of the new Code, and developing a strategy that helps the International Federations implement the Code," Burns said.

"The second key area is education.

"This needs to be done well for all members of the Paralympic family.

"We must not lose the nuances of classification for whatever audience we are trying to address, but we must make it as a topic accessible and understandable. 

"The final strategy is framing classification as something that is ever changing and evolving.

"We know from the last two decades that changes will happen to alter the landscape of classification: that could be new research, a medical advancement, or even a change to a sport.

"We must be flexible enough to ensure that advances can be accommodated within classification."

Classification is one of the most controversial subjects in the Paralympic Movement ©Getty Images
Classification is one of the most controversial subjects in the Paralympic Movement ©Getty Images

Burns also praised the work of the former Classification Committee and its chair since 2011 Anne Hart, and believes "we are definitely getting much closer to having objective reliable classification systems that everyone can understand" from its incarnation 20 years ago.

The chair is joined on the Classification Compliance and Oversight Committee by Viola Altmann, Graham Arthur, Iain Gowans, Erin Popovich, Moran Samuel and Sean Tweedy.