The community makes another huge effort

The CYBATHLON is more than a competition. This has been demonstrated once again in the last few days, when the organising committee was forced to re-adapt the format together with the teams.

On 13 and 14 November the teams from all over the world will finally show what they have developed over the past months. "We will be fascinated by the technologies and the skills of people with disabilities to solve everyday tasks in the competition. But we will also be amazed by the effort the CYBATHLON community has put into the Global Edition over the past weeks to show the world why it is important to jointly drive the research and development of assistive technologies for people with disabilities and thus inclusion," says Roland Sigrist, Director of the CYBATHLON at ETH Zurich.

Due to the fast increase of COVID-19 cases in Europe, especially in Switzerland, the CYBATHLON organising committee had no other option than to adapt the format and logistics of the CYBATHLON 2020 Global Edition once again. Thus, the competition can now also be held in a "lockdown situation". The production and organisation of CYBATHLON 2020 can be realised within small groups. This is done firstly to protect the people involved and secondly to counteract the high probability of staff absences due to illness or quarantine. Consequently, this means that the around 150 races of more than 50 teams are no longer held in parallel on one day as originally planned.

Races are pre-recorded

Lukas Jäger, head of competition, explains that the individual races will now be held and recorded in advance from 7 until 13 November. "Each team will still have three attempts in three hours, just as planned." The local CYBATHLON judges will evaluate the races on site. The teams work round the clock to adapt their local events to the new schedule. Only this way the CYBATHLON community will be able to show the world the work they have done over the past months and years, even in this extraordinary situation. Unfortunately, it is no longer possible for certain teams to participate, especially in Europe. "But the CYBATHLON will continue and develop after 2020. We are looking forward to all the teams in the coming years," says Roland Sigrist.

The live program on 13 and 14 November will be supplemented by stories about the teams, inclusion and technology. Experts will analyse the performances and discuss the progress of technology and inclusion together with the moderator live at ETH in Zurich and the moderator in England. The program is subtitled in several languages and translated into sign language.

The race results will be determined from the three races of each team: The best of the three attempts determines the final ranking and will be broadcast in the livestream. All races as well as results and all background stories will also be available in full length on the brand new online platform on www.cybathlon.com. The results of the races will remain secret until the livestream is broadcast.

The livestream programme on www.cybathlon.com

(Central European Time)

Friday, 13 November 2020

4 pm: Brain-Computer Interface Race

5 pm: Powered Arm Prosthesis Race

6 pm: Functional Electrical Stimulation Bike Race

7 pm: Inside CYBATHLON – Stories, Recap and Outlook

Saturday, 14 November 2020

1 pm: Powered Wheelchair Race

2 pm: Powered Leg Prosthesis Race

3 pm: Powered Exoskeleton Race

4 pm: Inside CYBATHLON – Stories, Recap and Outlook