World premiere women’s Para Athletics Grand Prix headed to Olomouc
On July 3rd and 4th, Olomouc will welcome the world’s best female para-athletes in the season’s last meeting of the Para Athletics Grand Prix – the para-sport equivalent of the Diamond League. It is the first ever meeting exclusive to female para-athletes, and the series’ maiden appearance in Czechia.
After meetings in cities like Dubai, Cali, and Paris, the Para Athletics Grand Prix will round off its season in Olomouc, with an eye on the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi. To qualify, an athlete needs a certain volume of results during the Para Athletics Grand Prix season.
In para-athletics, women only make up roughly one third of all athletes. Lukáš Dočkal, head of the para-sport section of the Olomouc Athletic Club, notes that the meeting in Olomouc is crucial for the upcoming World Championships, as it aims to boost the number of female athletes eligible to compete.
“The World Para Athletics Federation decided to organize an extra meeting for female athletes, in which they can score Grand Prix points. And they chose us to host it. So we not only have the honour of having the first Grand Prix here in Czechia and Olomouc, but also of having the world’s first that’s only for women,” Dočkal says.
In bringing the pioneering event to Olomouc, he also praised the role of the World Para Athletics Federation’s President, Paul Fitzgerald:
“One of his aims was precisely bringing more girls into para-sports. That’s why he delegated this Grand Prix to us. When he was here in December, to check up on our facilities and preparations, he was not only pleasantly surprised with Olomouc as a city, but he also put his faith in us, showing desire to cooperate over the full, four-year Paralympic cycle.”
The Para Athletics Grand Prix will welcome around 200 female athletes from all over the world. Dočkal warns that this number might fluctuate, however. Funding travel to Olomouc for a small delegation might not be financially attainable for para-athletic federations of far-away countries.
Italian para-sprint sensation Ambra Sabatini is one of the main stars confirmed to compete. The 23-year-old world record holder will start at her favoured 100m distance. Legendary para-cyclist Cassie Mitchell, with six world records to her name, and Martina Willing, a twelve-time Paralympic medallist in seated throws, will also line up in Olomouc.
Big domestic names include 2008 Paralympic shot put champion, Eva Kacanu, who lives and trains in Olomouc, and Eva Berná, a two-time World Para Athletics champion in the same discipline. Dočkal observes that the Czech para-sport landscape has made big strides over recent years, both on and off the track:
“I think we’re going in the right direction. The Czech Paralympic Federation does a good job at spreading the word about para-sports, not just athletics, and bringing attention to the events. Especially last year, during the Paralympic Games in Paris, there was a lot of publicity and media coverage.”
In the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games, which smashed viewership records, para-swimmer David Kratochvíl was the leading man of the Czech delegation with 3 medals, including one gold. In total, Czechia brought home 8 medals, though none of them in athletics.
Just like at the Paralympics, Grand Prix discipline categories are labelled with varying grades, indicating the severity and type of impairment. Based on that, all groupings have an adjusted point-scoring system. The Olomouc meeting will lead off at 10am on Thursday with the discus throw.
