4 minute read
Slam dunk – We
Photos unless otherwise stated: Dave Dunbar/Purple Swan Photography
SLAM DUNK
Caroline Kings, co-founder of We are Girls in Sport, looks at the increasing opportunities in sport for children with disabilities, with advice from two wheelchair basketball athletes.
In 2021, a remarkable film was released called ‘Rising Phoenix’. It tells the stories of several para-athletes – their childhoods, their disabilities and how they found sport. It is moving, fascinating but overall, absolutely inspirational, a real must-see.
What’s so great is that we’re seeing more and more disabled sports on our screens and in the media. The summer and winter Paralympic Games receive attention on terrestrial and digital TV channels, as well as in the press where disabled sports stars grace the covers of magazines.
These sports stars all started somewhere, just like able-bodied athletes. They all showed an interest in being active and had support to help them, but sometimes that support can be hard to find.
Inspiration close to home Playing to your strengths
Sarah Hope plays wheelchair basketball for the Worcester Wolves and is autistic. She was diagnosed in her twenties after feeling as though she didn’t always fit in for most of her life. As an autistic athlete, Sarah explains: “I have no problem concentrating on one thing for long periods of time, which makes skill acquisition easier.”
We are Girls in Sport (WAGIS) is a big fan of GB’s wheelchair basketball team and Siobhan Fitzpatrick’s story is a great example of how opportunities can be right under your nose.
“PE within my school wasn’t accessible and, although I was an avid sports fan, I knew I wanted to participate. Paralympic sport pre-London 2012 was not greatly advertised and even with me being disabled I was unaware that sport could be an option for me,” Siobhan says.
“I was asked to attend a ‘playground to podium’ event, which is a Paralympic sport ‘have a go’ day. I fell in love with the team aspect of wheelchair basketball and realised there was a club only 10 minutes down the road from my house. I just wish I’d known sooner.” Now, Siobhan is an Olympian herself and a poster girl for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Sarah adds: “I’m analytical and have good pattern recognition, which is handy for reviewing video of games and also for monitoring my own progress and knowing what does and doesn’t work for me. As for the downsides, my sensory sensitivities can be a barrier. It’s a loud, bright, fast-moving sport and that can lead to a certain amount of sensory overload. Add in the sensory input from being sweaty all the time, from injuries and bruises and cracked hands, and it can take time to recover from that.”
Give it a try
But how do you find the support that your child needs or just the chance to try a sport? If you don’t feel comfortable just popping down to a local club, most sports have a ‘para’ association and on those websites, there will be guidance on how to get involved. As with able-bodied children, let your child try as many different sports as they can. The benefits are huge: independence and a sense of achievement, as well as, hopefully, acceptance, for those who have become disabled. Wheelchair basketball Paralympian Sophie Carrigill says that being part of a sports team helped her identify with having a disability and she found a very welcoming community. The team motivated her to be fit and strong and her competitive spirit was reignited.
Disabled sport is on the ascendence – the opportunities, the awareness and the investment. In February 2022, wheelchair basketball made history: the first match in the new women’s wheelchair basketball premier league was contested between Loughborough Lightning (Siobhan Fitzpatrick’s team) and Wolverhampton Wolves (Sarah Hope’s team) and secondly, para sport was shown on British TV outside a Paralympic Games. Wow.
Disabled sport, just like its athletes, is most certainly a rising phoenix. Now’s the time to get your child involved.
We are Girls in Sport (wearegirlsinsport.
com) is a global movement to encourage more young girls to find a sport they love.
