Special meeting
On initiatives of Mr Pieter Joon (NED) the international representatives of participating nations had a meeting during the 1980 Games.
A provisional group of enthusiastic leaders sat together.
with: Mr I. Barlund SWE), Mr H. Haep (GER), Mr K. Aga (NOR), Mr R. Vute (YUG) and Mr P. Joon (NED) and representatives from Luxembourg and Finland, with one Agenda item: to discuss the future of international Sitting Volleyball for the disabled.
Mr H. Natvig MD (NOR) was appointed to be the responsible ISOD classifier who should control the international classification and eligibility of the players.
The pioneer nations would be those who entered the Paralympics in 1980 Volleyball in Arnhem (NED). ISOD would be the international governing body. An agreement was reached to formalize, in the subsequent year, an International Committee of members who could streamline the activities, the rules, and develop the Sitting and Standing Volleyball games.
Germany offered to organize the next international Sitting Tournament in 1981, where things can be finalized and decided by the participating Nations. A classification system for Standing Volleyball developed in Great Britain, by Mr Len Softley, has been adopted by the International Sports Organization for Disabled (ISOD). The Sitting nations stated that they wish to compete only with a “minimal disability” and no further classification or point-system.
Pieter Joon met with Mr Harald Natvig MD (NOR) everyday to discuss the classification problems. The ISOD had a classification system based on amputation. Other disabilities who enter the international competition have to be compatible to an amputation. This created a lot of problems for the ISOD classifiers in Volleyball.
A major problem was that for all Sports in ISOD, the same strict ”minimal disability” was applied and only one classification system. All athletes in all sports have to meet that criteria.
During the Arnhem Games, Pieter Joon wished that there was a “minimal disability” per Sport based on a “functional limitation” per Sport and per Event.
Thus, volleyball should have its own minimal disability and its classification should be different from other sports, like Athletics or Swimming. The participating Nations in a specific sport would have a casting vote on that and not the “medical committee” of ISOD or IPC.
