Editorial: Advancing performance: biomechanics in paralympic and adapted sports

The field of biomechanics is fundamental to advancing both performance and the safety of Paralympic and adapted sports athletes. As the Paralympic movement continues to grow and evolve, so does the need for sport-and impairment-specific research that addresses the biomechanical challenges faced by athletes with disabilities (Tweedy et al., 2014;Lee et al., 2024). By understanding the interaction between the biomechanical principles underlying human movement and impairment, researchers can drive the progress in the development of innovative strategies to optimize performance, prevent injuries and improve the design of assistive technologies and evidence-based classification systems in Paralympic Sports (De Luigi and Cooper, 2014;Antunes et al., 2017;Morriën et al., 2017;Fletcher et al., 2021;Rum et al., 2021).This Research Topic aims to explore these various aspects of biomechanics in Paralympic and adapted sports, providing a platform for disseminating innovative research. The articles gathered illustrate how biomechanical, physiological and functional assessments can inform both individualized performance and training strategies as well as classification criteria.Several contributions focus on understanding sport-specific performance factors and their implications for classification and training. In Altmann et al. (2025), inertial measurement units (IMU) were used to assess standardized wheelchair mobility and ball-handling tasks in wheelchair rugby athletes with coordination impairments (CI) and those with other impairments.