EMPOWER ERASMUS +

source: original drawing by Samuele Grassi

Erasmus+ Sport Small Collaborative Partnerships Program Period 2014-2020

ASD RIMINI MARATHON Begach Running Club Athletix AC Gozo Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS) ESPLORA

All the partnering entities shown above have actively participated in the Small Collaborative Partnerships Erasmus+ Sport Project entitled: EMPOWER European Marathon Pusher Of WhEelchaiR (Grant decision number: 622369-EPP-1-2020-1-IT-SPO-SSCP)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Introduction.

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How to organize a Wheelchair Friendly Race

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1.type of race

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2.marathon signage

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3.refreshments

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4.medical service

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5.registration

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6.awards

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7.hospitality

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8.transport before and after event

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9.marathon start

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10.wheelchair workshop

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Advice how to adapt wheelchairs to running races

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summary of project

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INTRODUCTION The world of marathon races is forever increasing its social awareness and inclusion strategies.

The purpose of the project is to encourage the inclusion, in European city marathons, of disabled wheelchair users who will be able to “run” the race accompanied by groups of wheelchair pushers, taking it in turn to complete the 42.195km track (or half-marathon) Currently there are very few groups of wheelchair pushers and even fewer marathons permitting the inclusion of these groups in events. Therefore, it is imperative to create a European network with guidelines to assist marathon organizers, and to facilitate wheelchair friendly events.

As all organizers know, organizing a marathon, or any important running race, is just as difficult as it is to run it!!

Adapting a marathon or a race to the necessities of wheelchair users is even more difficult, considering the multiple organizational aspects involved.

The aim of this handbook is to illustrate useful guidelines, on a European level, on how to organize wheelchair user and pusher, friendly marathons (or running races).

The handbook is a list of instructions, with illustrations and technical and methodological information, which covers all the aspects at planning a wheelchair friendly running race.

We hope this guide will be helpful.

At the same time, we emphasize that it is an “open” handbook which can be integrated and enriched by whoever wishes to contribute to the growth and development of the Wheelchair Pushers movement.

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HOW TO ORGANIZE A WHEELCHAIR FRIENDLY RACE

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1. Type of race All competitions of calibre provide a detailed description of the course and its characteristics (tarmac, dirt track, etc). This information must obviously be implemented and improved when organizing a marathon accessible to wheelchair pushers.

The type of surface along the marathon course, is of vital importance to the wheelchair pushers. Although a wheelchair designed for racing events is equipped to cope with dirt tracks, the difficulty is increased when faced with sandy surfaces and non-compact ones. In this case, the pusher would have to stop and lift both the wheelchair and its user, resulting in anxiety both for the pusher and wheelchair user, as well as a loss of time. It is important that such terrains are not present during a wheelchair friendly marathon.

Architectural barriers for wheelchairs such as stairs and underground passageways, are other obstacles to be avoided. If this is impossible, alternative routes must be made available for the pushers.

An inaccessible underground passageway or a few hundred meters of sandy terrain are all it would take to send the organizational efforts up in smoke.

The presence of architectural barriers and the type of terrain are only two aspects which the organizing body must take into careful consideration.

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2. Marathon signage As is the case with all marathons the route must be clearly defined eliminating the possibility of errors.

All competitors must be provided with a map before departure and there must be clear signage all along the route.

It is essential to employ capable staff to indicate crossroads.

It is necessary to take into consideration the pace of wheelchair pushers. On average, wheelchair pushers take 5/6 hours to complete a full marathon.

This is obviously much more than that of a marathon runner “running alone”.

Pushing a wheelchair requires greater strength and resistance. Hence, staff responsible must be on duty until the last pusher and marathon runner have passed the signage point, and service guaranteed up until this passage.

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3. Refreshments The pace of the pushers must also be taken into consideration when refreshments are being organized It is important to supply a constant and sufficient quantity and quality of food and drink during the entire duration of the race. If necessary, further refreshments could be supplied to the refreshment points as the race progresses, to guarantee a constant quantity.

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4. Medical service Medical service must also be guaranteed for the entire duration of the race.

5. Registration Registration to the event is another factor to be considered to facilitate the participation of the pushers. Below are some examples of how to encourage registrations to competitions by groups of wheelchair pushers:   

keeping a price cap fee right up to the start of the race discounts for pushers and zero fees for persons with disabilities possibility of group registration, as opposed to individual registration

It would be helpful to have bib numbers and race packages delivered to outside competitors residing in accommodations before the race.

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6. Awards To avoid discrimination attention must be devoted to awards: race packages must be the same for all athletes whether with disability or not. A final list award must also be created for the pushers.

7. Hospitality Hospitality is another important factor towards the success of a competition, despite it seeming to have no connection with sport. A welcoming hospitality for pushers leads to a welcoming hospitality for disabled persons.

For example, organizers of a wheelchair friendly marathon should contact wheelchair friendly hotels, or accommodations without architectural barriers and facilities with easy access for wheelchairs.

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8. Transport before and after event At important marathons and races wheelchair users are very often accompanied by their families. Their pushers usually travel in group as a team.

Consequently, event organizers should contact companies responsible for transfer from accommodations to and from the event venue.

As is logical, this means of transport must be 100% wheelchair friendly: ie access and exit ramps, sufficient and secure designated space for wheelchairs etc.

Preferably the organizers should allocate a large enough area where the wheelchair pushers can set up the wheelchairs before the race and dismantle after the race.

9. Marathon start It is not easy to coordinate a marathon start, involving pushers and other athletes taking part in the event. The pushers must have maximum visibility without causing problems to the other competitors.

Since the primary aim of the pushers is not to beat a record, we recommend that: 1. The pushers start 5 minutes before the official departure time and before all the other competitors. This gives more focused attention on the initiative and all the other competitors will be present at the starting event.

2. After the early start the pushers should pull over to one side to give way to the other competitors. Racing, while pushing a wheelchair at the same time, can cause problems, such as bumping into the ankles of another runner.

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3. However, in the case of very large marathons or World Athletics/AIMS certifies ones, it is understandable that runners seeking to break records should not have hindrance in their part, and in this case, it would be more sensible to start after the mass start.

4. At the end, what is important is to follow the organizer’s instructions and assure as much possible that wheelchairs should not be present at the crowded official start.

10.

Wheelchair workshop

A marathon is a long and difficult race during which wheelchairs must undergo adjustments to adapt to the terrain. We advise that the organizing team set up a designated area within the venue, equipped with a kit of tools that might be required for the basic maintenance of wheelchairs, such as inflating types, tightening nuts and bolts, oiling mechanisms etc.

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ADVICE ON HOW TO ADAPT WHEELCHAIRS TO RUNNING RACES

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Since wheelchair pushers participating in a competition must use equipment complying with the regulations in force in that country, we would like to offer some advice deriving from the experience of the organizations involved in the project Empower.

To take part in a running race with wheelchair users there are some aspects to be considered before the start of the race.  

ensure that the wheelchair user is safely secured to avoid unease and stress during long distance races, like marathons, physical activity may continue for several hours. Thus, wheelchairs must be as comfortable as possible.

Ideally, wheelchairs projected and built specifically for running races should be used for these events. However, these wheelchairs are often very bulky and are difficult to transport by plane or from one town to another and are usually very costly (fig. 1 and 2).

Fig.1

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Fig.2

One possibility could be to adjust the standard version wheelchair, to make it more comfortable.

A standard version wheelchair (fig. 3, fig. 4 and fig.5) may be adapted using a non- electric fifth / spare wheel enabling the two front wheels to rise slightly to cope with rough terrains and small obstacles.

Fig. 3 and Fig. 4

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Fig.5

The “fifth /spare wheel” is an extra wheel applied to the front part of the wheelchair and is very easy to do so.

In this way the wheelchair is raised slightly on the front wheels, enabling the wheelchair to manoeuvre smoothly over rough or rocky paths, avoiding that it won’t get blocked.

There are wheels that can be applied to the footrest of stable wheelchairs, and other wheels suitable for folding ones. Various models are available at accessible prices.

These spare wheels can be easily carried on a plane as they are lightweight and battery free.

In the case of a non-standard wheelchair, commercial adaptable kits are not to be taken into consideration. An expert artisan will have to be responsible for creating an ad hoc kit.

Another important factor is to be able to adjust the level of the handlebars for the benefit of the pushers. Kits are available in specialized health outlets.

Otherwise, it can be done by an expert artisan (fig. 6 and fig.7).

Fig.6

Fig.7

From our experience, should you wish to take part in competitions involving rough tracks, eco-marathons, trekking etc., one is recommended to check out a wheelchair manufacturer in Italy called Dertb, or another one in France called Joelette.

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Summary of Erasmus+ Project : EMPOWER European Marathon Pusher Of WhEelchaiR

The aim of this Erasmus project is to compile an easy Manual which can be a ready reference for those organizations/clubs that are involved in race organization, to help in the implementation of events that allow runners to organize tandems, as well as teams, in which someone (or several people) runs pushing a person with permanent disabilities in a customized racing wheelchair

Such a Reference Manual (Toolkit), besides containing a Technical Manual, can be available: 

Online from website: www.empower-run.eu created with the specific aim for this project with easy downloadable features in pdf format.



As a Paper Manual that can be: distributed to all half-marathon/marathon organizers in Europe/distributed to all organizations that hold events for disabled in Europe.

The Technical Manual contained in the Toolkit will explain how one can modify a normal wheelchair into an appropriate means of transport that can be pushed during an event, and thus indicate the components and necessary technical aspects for this to take part, besides indicating other commercial models that are already on the market for this purpose.

The European Commission's support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

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