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A Level Playing Field
The Evolution of Rehabilitative, Recreational, and Competitive Sports for people with Disabilities Story by J.R. Wilson
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n the quarter-century since enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), an expanded number of sports programs have arisen – in the United States and globally – dedicated to people with disabilities and giving them access to a growing number of sports, including some “high risk” activities, such as rock and mountain climbing, snow and water skiing, high-speed cycle racing, and scuba diving. Sports for individuals with disabilities did not begin to attract serious interest until they were used as a rehabilitative therapy for the thousands of wounded soldiers returning from World War II and for civilians who had been impaired during the conflict – especially those injured during the London Blitz. Sports as rehabilitation later grew into recreational sports and then into competitive sports. The most important of the competitive sporting events for people with disabilities was the Stoke Mandeville Games, organized to coincide with the 1948 London Olympic Games by Sir Ludwig Guttmann, an escapee from Nazi Germany who became a practicing neurosurgeon at England’s Stoke Mandeville Hospital. Beginning then with wheelchair athletes, the Stoke Mandeville Games eventually evolved into the modern Paralympic Games, governed by the International Paralympic Committee
(IPC). The Paralympic Games are closely tied to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as of 2000, as well as a wide range of other international sports organizations. The movement expanded to those with intellectual disabilities with a series of summer camps organized by Eunice Kennedy Shriver in 1962. Shriver had firsthand knowledge of the difficulties that individuals with intellectual disabilities faced at that time: her older sister, Rosemary Kennedy, to whom Shriver was very close, was born with an intellectual disability. Shriver grew up well aware of the limited programs and activities available for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, but her experience growing up with Rosemary and playing sports together showed her that when given the same opportunities as everyone else, people with intellectual disabilities could accomplish much. She started Camp Shriver in her backyard as a place for young people with intellectual disabilities to excel through participation in a variety of sports and physical activities. In 1968, sports for those with intellectual disabilities grew into the first International Special Olympics, held in Chicago, Illinois. About the same time, Disabled Sports USA (DSUSA) was created – originally as the National Amputee Skiers Association – to help rehabilitate disabled warfighters. In the
nearly half-century since, DSUSA has grown into one of the largest multi-sport, multi-disability organizations in the United States, with sports programs for more than 60,000 wounded warfighters, youth, and other adults each year. “We have seen a very dramatic increase in the opportunities and types of sports that have become available to people with disabilities,” DSUSA Executive Director Kirk Bauer said. “What we have seen since the ADA is facilities have become much more accessible, which of course is of great benefit to all disabled persons. That includes hiking trails, biking trails, fishing piers, etc. “What we have seen less of – and the challenge of this century – is a greater emphasis on programmatic accessibility. Persons with disabilities almost universally can now access bathrooms, facilities, pools, etc., but often the sports available to them have remained limited. We see that as an area that still needs a lot of growth and work.” As a result of the ADA, he added, lack of access to facilities is no longer a serious problem in the United States, especially when DSUSA offers its support in making improvements. “The ADA is a good backdrop because the owners and operators are aware of the law and we can offer to help them become accessible to this niche population,” he
