Paralympics: Talent, selection ' robust' for Rio

High Performance Sport New Zealand Chief Executive Alex Baumann. Photo / Getty Images

New Zealand's high performance sports boss Alex Baumann accepts assessing para athletes' potential is harder than when sifting through Olympic or Commonwealth Games prospects.

That said, Baumann likes what he's seeing in the lead-up to next year's Rio Paralympics, both in terms of athletic performance and the Paralympic New Zealand organisation's capabilities.

"No doubt there's more of a challenge," Baumann said of the assessment process. "But there has been good progress in the last four to six years to make sure the classification system is robust and rigorous.

"The core investment [from HPSNZ] is around $1.8 million but with performance enhancement grants and athletic performance support, and Prime Minister's scholarships, the total is around $3 million and that has been increasing since London [in 2012]."

Baumann, a double-Olympic gold medal swimming champion in 1984, and two-time world record holder for Canada, believes Paralympic NZ are doing a sound job in ensuring quality athletes are coming into the system.

"We have great confidence in them running those programmes," he said.

Baumann, confirming 12 gold medals is the target for New Zealand in Rio, cited swimmers Sophie Pascoe and Mary Fisher, cyclists Emma Foy and her pilot Laura Thompson, and Tim Williams, and shooter Michael Johnson as quality, proven athletes who can inspire those coming into the programme.

New Zealand's first placing in terms of medals at the 2012 Paralympics on a per capita basis, and the 16 medals won at this year's swimming IPC worlds in Glasgow -- again the leading country per capita -- are "amazing for such a small country to achieve on the world stage", Baumann added.

New Zealand's best gold medal return at a Paralympics is the nine from Atlanta in 1996.