Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association
Encyclopedia
Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association is the peak body for sport, recreation and fitness for people with a physical disability or vision impairment in Queensland
, Australia
.
The not-for-profit organisation's mission is "to enhance the lives of people with a disability through community engagement and education, sport and healthy activity." It supports people with a range of disabilities including acquired brain injury, amputations, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, spinal cord injury, other neuromuscular and orthopaedic conditions, and vision impairment (partial or total vision loss). The organisation's sports programs and services encourage participation from social level through to elite competition such as the Paralympic Games.
The organisation's headquarters is in Brisbane, with offices in Cairns, Townsville, Mackay and Capricorn region.
, Paralympian Ray Epstein OAM is the Chief Executive Officer of Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association.
In 1977, the club became a registered charity in its own right as the Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Sport Association of Queensland. By the following year, the Association had extended its programs and services to include people with physical disabilities other than spinal cord injuries. The decision was made to change to the current name to reflect the Association’s broader mission and capitalise on the popular term ‘sporting wheelies’ to describe wheelchair athletes.
Today, the Association is widely recognised as a leader in the field of sport and healthy activity for people with a disability by national bodies such as the Australian Sports Commission and the Australian Paralympic Committee.
In October 2011, the Australian Paralympic Committee
announced their commitment to the organisation, by providing assistance to member athletes. The deal the Sporting Wheelies signed was similar to ones signed by New South Wales and South Australia.
One athlete they helped is Glen "High Tower" McMurtrie.
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
The not-for-profit organisation's mission is "to enhance the lives of people with a disability through community engagement and education, sport and healthy activity." It supports people with a range of disabilities including acquired brain injury, amputations, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, spinal cord injury, other neuromuscular and orthopaedic conditions, and vision impairment (partial or total vision loss). The organisation's sports programs and services encourage participation from social level through to elite competition such as the Paralympic Games.
The organisation's headquarters is in Brisbane, with offices in Cairns, Townsville, Mackay and Capricorn region.
Governance
Under the Association’s Constitution, the general control and management of the administration of Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association is by a Board of six. An Advisory Council of Queensland business and community leaders meets on a regular basis to advise and assist the Board in the development and implementation of Association policies., Paralympian Ray Epstein OAM is the Chief Executive Officer of Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association.
History
The Association has its origins in the 1960s as a small sports club within the Paraplegic Welfare Association in Queensland. Sport for people with spinal cord injuries was gaining popularity following the first Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960, and the ‘Queensland Sports and Social Club for the Disabled’ played an active role in promoting disability sport and raising funds for Queensland athletes selected for national and international competitions.In 1977, the club became a registered charity in its own right as the Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Sport Association of Queensland. By the following year, the Association had extended its programs and services to include people with physical disabilities other than spinal cord injuries. The decision was made to change to the current name to reflect the Association’s broader mission and capitalise on the popular term ‘sporting wheelies’ to describe wheelchair athletes.
Today, the Association is widely recognised as a leader in the field of sport and healthy activity for people with a disability by national bodies such as the Australian Sports Commission and the Australian Paralympic Committee.
In October 2011, the Australian Paralympic Committee
Australian Paralympic Committee
The Australian Paralympic Committee is the National Paralympic Committee in Australia for the Paralympic Games movement. It oversees the means by which Australia participates at the Summer Paralympics and the Winter Paralympics.-History:...
announced their commitment to the organisation, by providing assistance to member athletes. The deal the Sporting Wheelies signed was similar to ones signed by New South Wales and South Australia.
Notable Paralympians
- Christopher ScottChristopher Scott (cyclist)Christopher Scott OAM is an Australian paralympic cyclist.-Biography:Christopher Scott was born in Gympie, Queensland, and currently resides in Parkinson, Queensland...
- Michael NugentMichael Nugent (athlete)Michael Nugent is a Paralympic athletics competitor from Australia. He won a gold medal and a silver at the 1980 Arnhem Games, with gold being earned in the Men's 200 m 3 event. The silver was in the Men's 400 m 3 event.-References:...
- Darren ThruppDarren ThruppDarren Thrupp is a Paralympian athlete from Australia competing mainly in category T37 sprint events. Thrupp has competed in five paralmpics winning at least one gold medal at each. His first medals at the Games were in 1992 when he won a gold medal in the C7-8 long jump, he followed this up in...
- Brendan BurkettBrendan BurkettBrendan Burkett is a Paralympic swimming competitor from Australia who won a gold medal at the 1996 Summer Paralympics in the Men's 50 m Freestyle S9 event.-Personal:...
- Warren Lawton
- Ashley AdamsAshley AdamsAshley Adams is an Australian cattle grazier and Paralympic shooting medallist.-Personal:Adams was born on 12 October 1955. He became a paraplegic in 1982 at the age of 26 after being involved in an accident at a local motorbike competition, where he fell off his motorbike and broke his back....
- Lyn ColemanLyn ColemanLyn Coleman is an Australian Paralympian who competed in boccia at the 1984 Summer Paralympics, 1988 Summer Paralympics, 1992 Summer Paralympics, 1996 Summer Paralympics and the 2000 Summer Paralympics. From 1995 to 2000, her international ranking climbed every year. She is from Queensland.-...
- Geoff TrappettGeoff TrappettGeoff Trappett is a Paralympic athletics competitor from Queensland, Australia. He won a gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Games in the men's 100m T54 event and a silver medal in the men's 4x100m relay T54 event.-References:...
- Amanda FraserAmanda FraserAmanda Fraser is a paralympic athlete from Australia. She has cerebral palsy and competes in the F37 category for the physically impaired. Competing in the 2000, 2004, and 2008 Summer Paralympics, she won two silver and two bronze medals, and in the 2006 World Championships, she won a gold and a...
- Brooke StockhamBrooke StockhamBrooke Stockham is a Paralympic swimming competitor from Australia. She won a trio of bronze medals at the 2000 Sydney Games in the Women's 100 m Breaststroke SB8 event, Women's 200 m Medley SM8 event and the Women's 4x100 m Medley 34 pts event.-References:...
- Karni LiddellKarni LiddellKarni Liddell is a Paralympic swimming competitor from Australia.-Personal:Liddell was born on 1 March 1979, and is from Queensland.She is a radio presenter for 4BC....
- Stephen EatonStephen EatonStephen Eaton is an Australian athlete from Queensland who competes at the national and international level in discus throwing and shot put at events such as the Paralympic Games, and International Paralympic Committee World Championships. Eaton won a bronze medal for discus at the 1996...
- Rene AhrensRene AhrensRene Ahrens is a Paralympic athletics competitor from Australia. He won a bronze medal at the 1988 Seoul Games in the Men's Discus 6 event.He also competed at the 1980 Summer Paralympics.-References:...
- Greg Ball
- Cameron de BurghCameron de BurghCameron de Burgh is a Paralympic swimming competitor from Australia.-Personal:De Burgh was born in New Zealand, but moved to Brisbane, Queensland in 1991 and represents Australia on the international level. He lost a limb in an at the age of sixteen; when performing a U–turn on a trail bike, ...
- Darren GardinerDarren GardinerDarren Gardiner is a Paralympic powerlifting competitor from Australia. He has won two silver medals at the Summer Paralympic Games in the Men's Over 100 kg powerlifting event.-Personal:...
- Marayke JonkersMarayke JonkersMarayke Jonkers is a Paralympic medal winning swimmer from Queensland, Australia. She won two bronze medals at the 2004 Summer Paralympics and a silver medal at the 2008 Summer Paralympics. She attended the University of the Sunshine Coast...
- Adrian KingAdrian King (basketball)Adrian King is a wheelchair basketball player from Australia. He was part of the gold medal winning Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team at the 2008 Summer Paralympics. He was part of the silver medal winning Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team at the 2004 Summer...
- Alison MoselyAlison MoselyAlison Mosely is a wheelchair basketball player from Australia. She was part of the silver medal winning Australia women's national wheelchair basketball team at the 2004 Summer Paralympics. She was part of the silver medal winning Australia women's national wheelchair basketball team at the...
Support
Member services include financial support to participate in representative sporting events and training camps; junior development squads for young athletes; social sporting competitions; subsidised recreational activities; and fitness and rehabilitation services through its Brisbane gym. The organisation also works with partners in disability services, the public sector and sporting bodies to promote inclusion and increase participation of people with a disability in sport and active recreation.One athlete they helped is Glen "High Tower" McMurtrie.