IDSF

The International Dwarf Sports Federation (IDSF) is the worldwide alliance of organisations dedicated to sport for short-statured people. In 1986, the first international competition for short-statured athletes was held. In 1993, ten organisations joined forces and launched the first World Dwarf Games, held in Chicago in the USA. In doing so, these associations founded the IDSF, which has since supported a host association in staging the World Dwarf Games every four years.

The IDSF's role is to promote international competition among short-statured athletes and to represent their interests with other international sporting bodies – such as the International Paralympic Committee. The World Dwarf Games aim to motivate short-statured people worldwide (generally those under 1.50 m in height) to take part in sport.

Goals and tasks of the IDSF:

• Promoting international competition: Organising and supporting events such as the World Dwarf Games, held every four years since 1993 and regarded as the world's largest sporting event for short-statured people.
• Representing interests: Championing the needs and rights of short-statured athletes at international level, in particular with major sporting organisations.
• Setting sport-specific rules: Developing and applying rules tailored to the requirements of short-statured athletes across the different disciplines.
• Selecting hosts and supporting organisers: Awarding the World Dwarf Games through a bidding process among member associations and providing resources and support for a successful event.
• Governing eligibility: Defining criteria and creating athlete profiles to ensure fair and equitable conditions of competition.

Previous editions of the World Dwarf Games have been held in Chicago (USA, 1993), Peterborough (England, 1997), Toronto (Canada, 2001), Rambouillet (France, 2005), Belfast (Northern Ireland, 2009), Lansing (USA, 2013), Guelph (Canada, 2017) and Cologne (Germany, 2023). The 9th World Dwarf Games will take place in Australia in 2027.

The IDSF works closely with national and international organisations to continually improve sporting opportunities for short-statured people and to promote their participation in the wider sporting community. German Dwarf Sports is actively involved in this international network and enables German athletes to take part in international competitions and the World Dwarf Games. Through our cooperation with the IDSF, we carry the ideas of fairness, inclusion and sporting participation across borders and strengthen the worldwide community of short-statured people.

The IDSF's rulebook and website are currently being revised. You'll find a link here as soon as the new versions are available.