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Overview

WWheelchair basketball is very similar to the full game of basketball and uses a large number of the same rules and scoring. The game brings together a combination of speed, skill, agility, balance and tactics and is contested by two teams of five players. It involves one team invading the other team’s 'territory', with the aim of shooting the basketball through their opponent's net to score a 'basket'.

The popularity of the sport is prolific. As such, it is one of the leading sports in the Paralympic Games. In the UK, there are currently 65 teams playing in nine divisions in the National Wheelchair Basketball League (NWBL).

History

Wheelchair basketball was originally developed by injured World War Two veterans in the USA in 1945. The game was specifically adapted so that the servicemen could still play and enjoy team sports.

Growth in both the number of wheelchair events and participants came quickly. By 1948, six teams emerged, representing different army hospitals across the USA, and these matches started the first official National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament (NWBT). The popularity of the sport in the USA began spreading worldwide and in 1955 the touring American team introduced wheelchair basketball to England.

WWheelchair basketball was introduced to the global stage at the 1960 Paralympic Games in Rome. However, although the sport was becoming popular, it was not until 1973 that the first organised women's game was played.

Today, the sport is played in nearly 100 countries worldwide.