Wheelchair basketball team educates students
April 8, 2008
Sophomore Justin Siebert takes his shot during the eighth annual Wheelchair Relay on Saturday in the Student Recreation Complex. The relay raised disability awareness.
Junior Jamie Schmittgens and senior Megan Schulze of the Student Occupational Therapy Association navigate the mine field event at the Wheelchair Relay on Saturday in the Student Recreation Complex.
Tiger Wheelchair Basketball coach Steve Paxton speaks at the education station during the Wheelchair Relay on Saturday in the Student Recreation Complex. Paxton spoke about efforts underway to make wheelchair basketball a recognized NCAA sport.
Raising money for the MU wheelchair basketball team, students and staff competed head to head and wheel to wheel at the 2008 Wheelchair Relay on Saturday at the Student Recreation Complex.
Four Winds Learning Community adviser Carmen Abbott, who coordinated the event, said it was created to promote disability awareness in Columbia. The Student Physical Therapy Organization, Tiger Wheelchair Basketball, Four Winds Learning Community and the School of Health Professions sponsored the event.
Freshman Interest Groups in the School of Health Professions encouraged students to participate as referees and event staffers. Freshmen Chandy Gomez and Alexis Fuemmeler volunteered to help run events.
“It’s important to put yourself in someone else’s shoes,” Fuemmeler said.
Abbott said each year about 12 to 15 teams participate, with participants ranging in age from elementary school students to university alumni. Teams of four or five registered to compete, rolling between stations such as wheelchair free throws, wheelchair volleyball or relay races.
“There are eight stations that the teams compete at,” Abbott said. “They learn sign language, or are blindfolded,” Abbott said.
Team Awesome, a four-woman team from the Student Occupational Therapy Association, competed because they wanted to experience the daily challenges of someone in a wheelchair.
“As an OT, you may have sympathy and empathy, but if you can really understand just a little bit about how the other person is feeling, you can contribute to a successful recovery and will let them feel more comfortable when working with a therapist,” senior Kelly Baranyai said.
The team participated in a majority of the stations, but found some more difficult than others. Senior Megan Schulze said she was surprised at the amount of arm strength required to throw the basketball.
“For me the hardest activity was the four-person relay race around the track,” Baranyai said. “I think all of our arms gave out.”
The “Education Station” was a forum in which participants could ask the wheelchair basketball team questions. Team Awesome member senior Erica Lindner was able to ask about how being part of the team impacts the lives of the players and gain some insight into the competitive wheelchair sport scene.
Sophomore wheelchair basketball player Casey Adams said that he has been playing wheelchair sports since he was eight years old, and that being part of the team helped him feel like he was part of the campus.
“It gives us a lot of motivation,” Adams said.
The team uses special wheelchairs when they play, with slanted wheels and an extra wheel in the back, to help make turning easier and to prevent them from falling backwards.
While the team does not hold tryouts, coach Steve Paxton said that the program is gaining popularity and might need to hold tryouts in several years.
“We are doing a lot of out-of-state recruiting,” Paxton said.
Paxton has started recruiting from numerous states including Nebraska, Wisconsin and Washington. He said that because there are not many teams, the players will often travel to small tournaments and play three games a day.
Lindner said she was surprised at how large the wheelchair basketball program was at MU.
“I think it’s a really great outlet, and such a positive part of their college experience,” Lindner said.
Although Team Awesome didn’t win any prizes at the relay, they gained an insight into their careers and the lives of people they would be helping in the future.
“I have gained so much respect not only for individuals with physical disabilities, but also those individuals who are hearing and visually impaired,” senior Jamie Schmittgens said.
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