Limiting Factors in the Practice of Paralympic Sports: a case study of Quetzaltenango

Abstract

Recently, interest has increased in the participation in sports of people with disabilities in Guatemala who meet the eligibility criteria established by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). Limited research has been carried out that allows to demonstrate the degree of accessibility of Para athletes to carry out their sports practice. The objective of this study was to interpret the limiting factors in the practice of Paralympic sport by Para athletes from the department of Quetzaltenango. Through a case study of qualitative design, thirteen data are obtained from active and inactive athletes: goalball (7), athletics (4) and boccia (2) between the ages of 18 to 52 years. Data collection strategies include semi-structured interviews, observation, and field journal. The result show that the main limitations are the lack of coaches, scarce economic resources and accessibility barriers to the different sports practice space. The study shows that they still do not have the necessary conditions to guarantee their equal access in relation to conventional athletes, which generates limited development of the Paralympic Movement in Quetzaltenango.