The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) recently announced that the fourth VISTA Conference will be held from 6 to 7 May 2006 in Bonn, Germany. The theme of this Conference will be "Classification – Solutions for the Future".

One of the main goals of the VISTA Conference is to bridge the gap between theory and practice and to encourage interdisciplinary discussion. In 2003, the IPC developed a Classification Strategy with the intention to support and co-ordinate the ongoing development of accurate, reliable, consistent and credible sport focused classification systems and their implementation. This Conference will provide an ideal environment in which to discuss how science can contribute to the field of classification in the future.

Athletes, coaches, trainers, classifiers, researchers, students and representatives of NPCs and International Paralympic Sport Federations (IPSFs) and International Sports Organizations for the Disabled (IOSDs) are encouraged to submit abstracts for oral presentations that are pertinent to the Conference theme. All abstracts submitted will undergo a peer review by the Sports Scientific Committee established for this purpose.

Authors are asked to submit their abstract electronically by 1 August 2005, to Andy Parkinson, IPC Medical and Scientific Director, at andy.parkingson@paralympic.org accompanied by an Abstract Submission Form. More information can be found on the VISTA Conference section on the IPC Website.