Showing posts with label Sport. Show all posts

Aboriginal Paralympic Champion and SCI BC Peer Mentor Gives Back On and Off the Court

By 

“You can complain about anything every single day of your life, or you can get out there and live your life.”

richard-peter-profileAn excited four year old. A schoolbus. A blind spot.
Richard Peter doesn’t remember his accident, but he’s read the court cases and shared his experience with rooms of schoolkids so many times that he more or less has the details down.
“I wanted to go play and have fun with all my friends, so I tried to run and catch up to the school bus. But the bus driver didn’t see me behind him, and he backed up right over me,” says Richard, 41, who grew up in a Cowichan reserve near the island town of Duncan. “The only reason I lived was that I fell into a puddle—he ran right over my chest.”
As with any spinal cord injury, the injury didn’t  just happen to Richard—it happened to his whole community. And, if the accident itself doesn’t stick out in Richard’s mind, the support he received afterwards does. Workers from Spinal Cord Injury BC (formerly the BC Paraplegic Association) visited the small boy in rehabilitation and later at his Duncan home, and helped his parents adapt to caring for a child in a wheelchair.
“A spinal cord injury doesn’t happen to one person—it happens to their whole community.”
His siblings, cousins, and friends continued to challenge Richard in a variety of sports. And, slowly, the small town of Duncan adjusted too, taking note of how inaccessible most public buildings were and even arranging for a wheelchair basketball demo team to play at Richard’s high school.
“A BCPA [ Spinal Cord Injury BC] worker got me one of my first sports chairs,” Richard says. “The first time I played wheelchair basketball, I didn’t even know that there was a Paralympics—I just enjoyed playing sports.”
When, as a teenager, he did finally try his hand at wheelchair sports, Richard, who was used to keeping up with his able-bodied cousins and friends, excelled. He drifted towards team sports, zeroed in on basketball, and soon found himself on the provincial, and then the national, team. “I liked participating in sports and travelling, and the big thing was that I was able to travel off of the island,” says Richard who, on the court, picked up the nickname Bear. “Once I made the provincial team and national team, I started travelling all over the world.”
Read the full article at Spinal Cord Injury BC
http://sci-bc.ca/peer-profiles/richard-peter/
Paralympic

ITU President delighted by new Paralympic classification system launched for Rio 2016

The Yokohama Triathlon saw the first ever ITU World Triathlon Series event for Para-triathletes ©ITUBy Paul Osborne

 International Triathlon Union (ITU) President Marisol Casado has expressed her delight today at the new classification system launched at the Yokohama Para-triathlon.
It was the first formal ITU World Triathlon Series for Para-triathletes with the sport due to make its Paralympic debut at Rio 2016. 

The new system saw the athletes split into five classification groups allowing for even competition as they battled for honours in the Japanese city.

The groups ranged from P1 to P5 with the former encompassing athletes competing in a wheelchair and the latter for those with total or partial visual impairment.

"We have enjoyed one of the most competitive Para-triathlon events of the year with athletes coming from around the world to compete here," said Casado, a member of the International Olympic Committee.

"In this Yokohama race, we are delighted to have implemented a new research-based classification system that allows Para-triathletes with different degrees of disability to compete against one another.

"ITU is leading the way to advance the new classification system and this demonstrates our dedication to innovate and evolve Para-triathlon to ensure we can offer the best competitive race environment and enable athletes and watching fans to celebrate great athletic achievements.

"The ITU is also extremely proud that Para-triathlon will make its debut at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, offering an inclusive global opportunity for athletes to perform at elite level in a modern and dynamic sport.

"I believe on this evidence that Para-triathlon has the potential to become one of the fastest growing sports in the Paralympic Movement."

Read the full article at Inside The Games 

http://www.insidethegames.biz/paralympics/summer-sports/triathlon/1020118-itu-president-delighted-by-new-paralympic-classification-system-launched-for-rio-2016
Paralympic

Pinkwash? For Every $100 Of NFL Pink Merchandise Sales, Only $3.54 Goes Toward Cancer Research


by Rick Chandler | 8:45 pm, October 9th, 2013
The NFL, meanwhile, keeps $45: making it a huge moneymaker for a league that already enjoys nonprofit tax-exempt status. (The league says that it doesn’t actually profit from this, however. See below). So should the NFL get flagged for “pinkwashing”: exploiting a good cause for its own benefit? With its Breast Cancer Awareness “Crucial Catch Campaign” Month, is the league more interested in promoting its brand — especially among women — than it is in actually helping a good cause?
According to Business Insider, the NFL is keeping approximately 90 percent of money from sales of Breast Cancer Awareness gear, like that towel above. And of the money that the American Cancer Society does receive, less than 80 percent of that goes toward actual research.
When we contacted the NFL’s online shop for clarification, we were told 5% of the sales are being donated to the American Cancer Society. If the pink products have a typical 100% mark-up at retail, that means the NFL is keeping 90% of the profit from the sale of Breast Cancer Awareness gear.
And then consider that only 70.8% of money the ACS receives goes towards research and cancer programs. So, for every $100 in sales of pink gear, only $3.54 is going towards research while the NFL is keeping approximately $45 (based on 100% mark-up).

Read more at Sports Grid

(http://www.sportsgrid.com/nfl/pinkwash-for-every-100-of-nfl-pink-merchandise-sales-only-3-54-goes-toward-cancer-research/) 
charity

Deaf News: Deaf swimmer “kicked off lifeguard course for being deaf”


Posted on September 3, 2013
Unbelievably, a champion Deaf swimmer, who represented the UK at the World Deaf Swimming Champtionships,  has been kicked off a lifeguard course in the third week of training for being deaf.
A champion swimmer and Commonwealth Games hopeful has been kicked off a lifeguard training course because he is deaf.
James Webster, 21, of Rossiter Road, Tooting, is a deaf competitor for Great Britain.
The rising star has dreams to compete in the Commonwealth Games and was hoping to fund his training by working as a lifeguard.
He enrolled on a National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ) course at Tooting Leisure Centre last month, passing level one of the course within a few weeks.
But as he entered the third week of the course he was told by his tutor he could not continue, because he is deaf.
Instructors told him he would not be able to do the job as he would not be able to hear people breathing and would struggle to communicate with colleagues.
The Institute of Qualified Lifeguards said they cannot always accept candidates who have poor vision or hearing.
A publication by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) also states lifeguards must have good hearing.
Mr Webster, who communicates using sign language and lip reading, is now seeking legal advice.
Update: We have found a deaf lifeguard
Read the full article at the Limping Chicken 
(http://limpingchicken.com/2013/09/03/deaf-news-deaf-swimmer-kicked-off-lifeguard-course-for-being-deaf/)
deaf & hard of hearing

A year on from the Paralympics, people with disabilities still face prejudice and abuse

David Weir
British quadruple gold medal-winning Paralympian David Weir takes part in the London 2012 victory parade. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images


When Don goes out, he faces frequent hostility. Despite living in a picture postcard part of the country, this man in his 40s, with autism and emphysema, finds himself increasingly shoved aside on the street because he moves too slowly. Recently parking in a blue badge space, he was confronted by a hate-filled thug who screamed about "bloody benefit scroungers" then followed him up the street shouting insults until he saw a police officer.

Few people with disabilities will be surprised. There are an estimated 200 similar cases a day in our supposedly civilised nation, while a study found eight in 10 of those with autism suffering harassment like Don. One speaker at a conference asked his audience of 300 disabled people if anyone had endured taunts and abuse; all but 10 put their hands up, although hardly any bothered to report the incidents. Then there are the most extreme cases: the blind lady punched to the ground, the man with learning disabilities set on fire, the teenager killed on his birthday. Bear these incidents in mind if you hear hype about how the Paralympics changed Britain.
Tomorrow marks one year since the Paralympics, that glorious festival of sport, began. It ended with highfalutin speeches and proclamations of a seismic change in attitudes. We were told people would never see disability in the same way after witnessing the dazzling exploits of David Weir.
Read the full story at the Guardian 
advocate

Messi draws disabled children to sport

Posted Friday, Aug. 09, 2013

BY DEBORA REY

Associated Press
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Valentino is a fan of the River Plate soccer club who dreams of dodging down the field like Argentine star Lionel Messi. Adrian wants to score goals like his hero, former Boca Juniors standout Martin Palermo. Eugenia and Sofia just want to have fun with the ball.
All four must use joysticks to get around in motorized wheelchairs, but they're still getting a taste of their dreams. They're among the 50 or so youngsters who recently began playing Powerchair Football in Buenos Aires.
The sport, which began in France in 1978 and now has active leagues in the United States, has finally reached football-mad Argentina, providing an enjoyable outlet for quadriplegics and others who can't walk because of multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, paralysis or spinal cord injuries.
Read more at Star Telegram 

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/08/09/5068969/ap-photos-golazo-disabled-kids.html#storylink=cpy
kids

Philanthropic NFL Player Battling Lou Gehrig’s Disease Mocked By Now-Fired Radio Hosts

posted on June 18, 2013 at 12:19pm
By: Kevin Lincoln

From 2000–2006, Steve Gleason played defensive back for the New Orleans Saints.

From 2000–2006, Steve Gleason played defensive back for the New Orleans Saints.
Image by Tom Berg/NFLPhotoLibrary / Getty Images

Gleason mostly made his career as a reserve safety and special teamer, and there’s a statue outside the New Orleans Superdome commemorating a punt he blocked during the first Superdome game following Hurricane Katrina.

Gleason mostly made his career as a reserve safety and special teamer, and there's a statue outside the New Orleans Superdome commemorating a punt he blocked during the first Superdome game following Hurricane Katrina.
Image by Gerald Herbert / AP

In 2011, Gleason announced he’d been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Since then, he’s been active in the New Orleans community as an advocate for ALS sufferers. He has lost nearly all of his motor functions.

In 2011, Gleason announced he'd been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's disease. Since then, he's been active in the New Orleans community as an advocate for ALS sufferers. He has lost nearly all of his motor functions.
Image by Gerald Herbert, File / AP
That’s the setup. This is the story: Because of his disease — a diagnosis of ALS usually results in death after three to five years — Gleason communicates via a computer that he controls by blinking. And he wrote an essay about his disease and his family via the same means, which Sports Illustrated’s Peter King ran as his column this week. It’s emotionally touching, and it’s intellectually impressive in its analysis of what science can and can’t offer us as people. It’s worth reading in full.
Read the whole story via Buzzfeed 
ALS

For Legally Blind Pole Vaulter, the Sky’s the Limit



May 16, 2013 
Steve Osunsami


At just 15 years old, Charlotte Brown has learned to fly — with a pink pole vault.
She’s not just the best pole vaulter Emory Rains High School, in Emory, Texas, has ever had, Charlotte is one of the best in the nation. She’s cleared 11 feet, 6 inches. And at the Texas state championships last week, the sophomore took eighth place — to a standing ovation.
What’s most amazing, however, is that Charlotte is legally blind. She said her vision was like looking down the inside of little black straws.
“I can’t really make up a blur even,” she told ABC News. “It just blends in for me.”
She frightened her parents, Ian and Stori Brown, when she told them that she’d like to try to jump.
“I said, ‘I have some concerns,’” Ian said.
“We never told her no,” Stori said. “We never told her she couldn’t do something, that we weren’t going to sign her up for an activity or a sport.”
Blind

Blind Paralympian Champion Tim Reddish has Bionic Eye Implant.


Brilliant, Way to Go on February 21, 2013
‘The chip is changing my life’: Tim Reddish with the silver medal he won at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics and the OBE he was awarded in 2009
He’s won more than 50 medals swimming for his country, but Tim Reddish only ever had the pleasure of seeing a handful of them.
Diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition at the age of 31, the former Paralympian went totally blind 17 years ago.
But thanks to the fitting of a bionic eye, the 55-year-old can now see his haul in all its glory.
Mr Reddish – currently the chairman of the British Paralympic Association – told yesterday how a revolutionary retinal chip is enabling him to make out shapes and read a clock face.
Blind
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