Cybathlon 2016
Cybathlon, the first Olympic Games for bionic athletes was hosted on 8 October 2016, in Kloten, Switzerland. This world premiere saw 74 international disabled athletes – kitted out with bionic prostheses and brain-computer interfaces – compete with each other at the specially created events. These modern-day cyborgs from 25 different countries competed in 59 different teams from all over the world.
The initiative was launched by Robert Riener, a professor of sensory-motor systems at ETHZ. “One of the goals of the cybathlon is to encourage researchers and developers to work on robotic technologies that can substantially improve daily life for people with disabilities.”
ETH Zurich will host the next Cybathlon in May 2020 in Zurich, Switzerland!
The unique competition for people with disabilities will continue!
The six disciplines from 2016; Brain-Computer Interface Race, FES Bike Race, Powered Arm Prosthesis Race, Powered Leg Prosthesis Race, Powered Exoskeleton Race, Powered Wheelchair Race, will remain in the Cybathlon 2020 programme. The tasks will continue to be relevant to everyday life, but will reflect advances in research. The main goal of the Cybathlon 2020 is to push the development of assistive devices for people with disabilities.
Due to the very successful Cybathlon event in 2016 and the feedback received, the Organising Committee plans an even bigger event, breaking it up into two days. There will also be an attractive secondary programme, wherein the visitors can try out the disciplines for themselves (hands-on demos) and understand the issues surrounding disability in a practical way.