A Sporting Effort
Wheelchair Athletics Has Become Increasingly Popular Over the Years
Warmer weather is here across much of the country. Spring is the perfect time to get outside and get active. So join a team , have some fun and get healthier.
Wheelchair Sports, USA and similar programs address the needs of those athletes often overlooked in school and community recreational programs.
The Beginnings
The idea behind the National Wheelchair Athletic Association, as it was known in 1956, came from the desire of many injured WW II GIs to participate in a sport other than basketball. Wheelchair basketball had experienced a great surge in popularity in the early 1950s because of teams sponsored by veterans’ hospitals and other rehabilitation agencies. These teams, however, were available only to servicemen with injuries below the waist. The National Wheelchair Athletic Association appealed to a broader audience of athletes with disabilities because it could accommodate women and quadriplegics, two groups that the veterans’ hospital sponsored basketball teams could not reasonably accommodate at the time.
In 1994, the National Wheelchair Athletic Association changed its name to Wheelchair Sports, USA, to better represent its mission and goals.
Sports
Much has changed since the days of veterans’ hospital basketball teams. Among the first sports, aside from basketball, to be offered to wheelchairs athletes were javelin, archery, shot put and track and field. Today, almost any sport that an athlete can dream of participating in is available.
On its website, Wheelchair Sports, USA, lists archery, track and field, road racing, swimming, shooting, weightlifting and table tennis as some of the sports programs it offers. Disabled Sports USA offers athletes participation in golf, water sports such as kayaking and water-skiing, snow skiing and snowboarding, hiking, cycling, hunting and fishing. Training and competition is also available in the adapted form of the martial art T’ai Chi.
Another popular sport for disabled athletes is quad rugby. The popularity of the sport is due, at least in part, to the critically acclaimed and Oscar-nominated documentary Murderball.
Extreme Sports
As is the case with any extreme sport, extreme wheelchair sports are not for the faint of heart. Extreme wheelchair sports include downhill mountain biking, off road racing, jumping and jousting. Click here to watch a YouTube video of some extreme wheelchair jumping.
Get Involved
The first step is to know your limits. Know your abilities and what you are capable of and you can find a sports program that is right for you.
Whatever sport you’re interested in, either as a competitive athlete or just for fun and exercise, you can begin participating with just a click of your mouse. Visit the website of one of the organizations for wheelchair sports, find a chapter local to you and you’re on your way.
Although you may feel healthy and ready to take on anything, be sure to check with your doctor before participating in any sport to make sure you are healthy enough for the activity.
