Bonn (Germany), Nov 20 (IANS ) The Athlete’s Council of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has elected Vladyslava Kravchenko of Malta as Chairperson and Yoomin Won of South Korea as second Vice-Chair during a meeting held at the organisation’s headquarters here on Wednesday.
Vladyslava Kravchenko took over the role of Chairperson from Jitske Visser, who served from November 2021 to November 2024. The new Chair will serve for four years until 2028 and will be an ex-officio member of the IPC Governing Board with voting rights, the IPC informed in a release on Wednesday.
Yoomin Won was also elected as the second Vice-Chair during the same meeting.
The IPC Athletes’ Council (AC) is the collective voice of Paralympic and Para athletes within the IPC and the greater Paralympic Movement. The Athletes’ Council serves as an advisory body to the IPC Governing Board, carrying out tasks specifically delegated by the Board.
Newly elected Chairperson Vladyslava Kravchenko is a Paralympian and Para swimmer who represented Malta at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. She was re-elected as a Member of the Council for a second term during elections held at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Second Vice-Chair and Paralympian Yoomin Won is an accomplished athlete in wheelchair basketball, Para cross-country skiing and Para biathlon. He represented the Republic of Korea at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games as well as the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games.
Winter Games Paralympian Josh Dueck of Canada will continue as the first Vice-Chair. In this position, he is also an ex officio member of the IPC Governing Board with voting rights.
On being elected, Kravchenko said: "My primary objective is to be a strong representative for Para athletes from countries where Para sport is currently underdeveloped, including small states, developing nations, regions in conflict, and countries with recently established National Paralympic Committees (NPCs).
"NPCs in these regions often lack the necessary infrastructure, funding, and support systems to nurture and develop Paralympians. I look forward to serving the Paralympic Movement in my new role and supporting the IPC’s strategic objective of driving impact through Para sport globally."
IPC President Andrew Parsons congratulated Vladyslava Kravchenko and Yoomin Won on their election as Chairperson and second Vice-Chairperson.
The IPC Athletes’ Council is made up of nine athletes in total, which includes six summer athletes and three winter athletes.
The five summer sports members in addition to Vladyslava Kravchenko are: Martina Caironi (Italy, Para Athletics), Lenine Cunha (Portugal, Para Athletics), Denise Schindler (Germany, Para Cycling), Yuijao Tan (China, Para Powerlifting) and Yoomin Won (Rep. Korea, Wheelchair Basketball). The three winter sport council members are Josh Dueck (Canada, Para Alpine Skiing), Mitchell Gourley (Australia, Para Alpine Skiing), and Birgit Skarstein (Norway, Para Nordic Skiing).
In addition to the nine elected members, the IPC Athletes’ Council can appoint up to five additional members on two-year terms, to ensure there is a balance between gender, regions, sports, and disability groups. Presently this includes Grigoris Polychrondis (Greece, Boccia).
Elections will be held for the three winter sport athlete positions at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games in March 2026.