What is Disability Sports?
In general, disability sports are opportunities given to persons with physical, sensory and learning impairments to play sports or engage in physical activities both competitive and recreationally. The aspirations of an athlete with a disability are similar to any other sporting person. The athlete aims to achieve a level of physical and psychological fitness for the chosen sport and demonstrate that ability in competition. The self discipline, positive effect on self-esteem and body image, and friendship are integral components of sporting.

The athlete will generally choose a sport based on his or her abilities. This may be in open able-bodied competitions or in competitions modified for people with similar disabilities. The emphasis is on the ability for a sport, not the disability.

How it all began
Historically, the first record of disabled people participating in sports was in the Napoleonic Wars when a team of one-armed patients of Greenwich Hospital played a team of one-legged patients at crickets.

The oldest continuing sports association for athletes with disabilities is the deaf sport association established in 1924. The credit for the formation of the modern sporting movement for people with disabilities goes to the neurosurgeon Ludwig Guttman who founded the Stoke Mandeville Spinal Injuries Unit in England in 1944. He promoted the therapeutic benefit of sport with the benefits for physical social and psychological rehabilitation following spinal cord injury. He established the first Stoke Mandeville Games which subsequently developed into an international event contributing to the formation of the Paralympic movement. Hans Linstrom contributed to the formation of the winter Olympics which was first held in Sweden in 1974.

The Special Olympic movement has developed separately as an event for people with more severe intellectual disability. Athletes with intellectual disability will be integrated within Paralympic competition in Sydney in 2000.
The World Games for deaf are conducted every four years (Summer Games 1997, 2001, Winter Games 1999, 2003).

References
Shephard RJ. (School of Physical and Health Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Canada)
United Spinal Association Recreation, New York


Benefits of Disability Sports
An increase of physical activity is commonly recommended to those with physical disability, but it is necessary to distinguish competitive sport from fitness programmes, remedial gymnastics and active recreation.

Potential benefits of enhanced activity are reviewed. Likely psychological gains include an improvement of mood-state, with a reduction of anxiety and depression, an increase of self-esteem and feelings of greater self-efficacy.

Sociological gains include new experiences, new friendships, and a countering of stigmatization. Perceived health is improved, and in a more long-term perspective there is a reduced risk of many chronic diseases.

Finally, there is a greater likelihood of employment, with less absenteeism and enhanced productivity. Both the health and the industrial benefits have a potential to yield cost savings that could make an important contribution toward the expense of suitably adapted physical activity programmes.

It is concluded that the physically disabled should be encouraged to engage in physical activity, although further large-scale longitudinal studies are needed to determine the optimal type of programme for such individuals.

Physical Benefits For persons with a disability who require the use of adaptive devices (walkers, crutches, wheelchair), being in good physical shape enables them to use their equipment more effectively, with less fatigue after longer usage. In addition, they have less chance to become injured from the everyday strain on their joints due to the use of adaptive devices. For persons with a disability who require the use of adaptive devices (walkers, crutches, wheelchair), being in good physical shape enables them to use their equipment more effectively, with less fatigue after longer usage. Athletes have healthier body fat to muscle ratio, decreased obesity, improved cardio-pulmonary functioning, and increased muscular strength and endurance. They show improved mobility, balance, and endurance.

Psychological Benefits People with disabilities who participate in sports or regular exercise have been shown to handle pressure and stress, better than those persons who did not exercise. They also experienced less depression, confusion, tension and anger. Sports provide the disabled athlete the opportunity to develop a sense of mastery and set and achieve certain goals. Swimmers are reported to have a strong self-identity, strong competitive nature, and goal-oriented focus

Social Benefits Through sports, persons with disabilities have the opportunity to experience peer interaction, acceptance, and recognition. Sports can be a vehicle to combat discrimination by providing the able-bodied athlete the opportunity to see the athletic ability of the disabled athlete.