Ireland's Derek Malone has been excluded from the Paralympic Games seven-a-side football tournament after a ruling by the Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association.

Derek (28), who won bronze in the T38 800 metres in Athens, was deemed ineligible to participate in the Paralympics tournament in Beijing following a classification review by Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association (CP-ISRA).

The ruling dictated that Malone's current condition did not meet their minimal disability criteria.

There is no cure for cerebral palsy, but the condition can be managed.

Mr Malone, from Limerick, entered the tournament as a CP8 – for players with the lowest level of cerebral palsy – and was assessed during Ireland's 4-2 loss to Iran on Monday.

The Paralympic Council of Ireland (PCI) were then informed of the decision.

The PCI believe Malone, one of the squad’s conditioning coaches, has been disqualified for optimising his performance through training.

“I find it ridiculous,” said Mr Malone, who opted to play football in Beijing after the T38 800m was removed from the athletics programme.

“High performance sport is about pushing the limits.

“This has left a bitter taste in my mouth because of the principles that I believe in: hard work, discipline and the chance to show what you can do,” he said today.

Malone has been involved in football throughout his career as an international athlete.

In 2002 he was sidelined from a football tournament, after officials suggested his condition was caused by a |co-ordination disorder and not cerebral palsy.

Ridiculous

However, that decision was appealed successfully and he went on to place third in Greece in 2004.

PCI secretary general Liam Harbison stressed his belief that the ruling is particular to seven-a-side football and does not have wider ramifications for the Games.

“I don't think this brings into question the classification system in Paralympic sports, it's particular to this one sport,” said Mr Harbison.

“The situation with Derek's case is complex and his review at these Games was on the basis of a protest to a decision made in May.

“We took the risk, in some respects, to select Derek, believing, backed up by medical evidence, that Derek is eligible to play and should be eligible to play.

“Unfortunately the classification team decided otherwise.”

There is no opportunity for the PCI to appeal against the ruling, but they have received the support of their counterparts from Ukraine, Brazil and Holland, who believe the football classification system is flawed.

- Jane Last