Combining different disability classes to compete against each other during competition has often been a confusing and sometimes controversial issue in Paralympic sport.

The latest incident involved Britain's double-leg amputee marathon runner Richard Whitehead being excluded from competing here in the IPC Athletics World Championship marathon for the T11, T12, T46 and T54 classes because he is a T42.

"There is a little bit of confusion between classes and how we organise competition but that can be to do with the number of athletes with a particular disability that want to take part in an event," Gonzalez told insideworldparasport.

"That is sometimes why there can be no opportunities for athletes to compete in certain events.

"For example, you cannot make an event for just one or two people and sometimes you cannot put them in the same event against another disability class as the competition would not be fair.

"Our goal is not to combine more classes - it is to have all the classes we need with the athletes we have available.

"Depending on the number of athletes and the type of events they compete in, it may be that we sometimes group athletes to compete against different classes to facilitate competition and create opportunities, but only to the extent that the competition remains fair and the impairment are similar.

"That is just competition format."

Gonzalez added that the processes involved in classifying Paralympic athletes may never be perfect but that it is an evolving process.

"Classification is our trademark," he said.

"It is what makes Paralympic sport and it is the fundamental basis in determining how we organise competition.

"What is very clear to us though is that this is an on-going and evolving process.

"We are improving and we will always continue to improve but we do want to make it clearer and more understandable to people who are watching Paralympic sport for the first time and do not understand it well.

"It may always continue to be an issue for some but as we evolve, we will have better systems in place.

"As the Movement grows and the impairments change and we reach more countries, we must change with it and respond to it.

"However, if you look overall, we have a solid classification in place today with the information, the data and the research and all the elements we have at the moment.

"In 10, 20 years that will improve for sure."

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