 Canada'sGarett Hickling vs. USA's Bryan Kirkland at a wheelchair rugby game | |
| Characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Type | Wheelchair sport,rugby sport |
| Presence | |
| Paralympic | Yes, demonstrated in1996, medal event since2000 |
| World Games | Yes, demonstrated in2022 |
Wheelchair rugby is a team sport forathletes with a disability that is practiced in over twenty-five countries and is a summerParalympic Games sport. Five Canadians, who were looking for sports accessible to people withtetraplegia, created wheelchair rugby in 1976. The game is played indoors on a hardwood court; it includes physical contact between wheelchairs. The rules include elements fromwheelchair basketball,ice hockey,handball andrugby union. In wheelchair rugby, players cannot kick the ball; they must move it towards the goal by carrying it while in a wheelchair. Wheelchair rugby uses a spherical ball, unlike that used in traditionalrugby.[1]
There are several codes of wheelchair rugby, the oldest being a four-against-four version originally namedmurderball orquad. Players must have some loss of function in at least three limbs to qualify for this version. Other versions of the game were created for different disability levels; there exists a three-against-three version for players with major impairments and a more inclusive, five-discipline version.
The sport is governed by theWorld Wheelchair Rugby (WWR), which was established in 1993.
Wheelchair rugby was created in 1976 by Canadian wheelchair athletes Gerry Terwin,Duncan Campbell, Randy Dueck, Paul LeJeune and Chris Sargent, inWinnipeg, Manitoba, for persons withtetraplegia.[2] At that time,wheelchair basketball was the most common team sport for wheelchair users but the physical requirement for players to dribble and throw the ball into a hoop relegated quadriplegic athletes, with functional impairments to both their upper and lower limbs, to supporting roles. This new sport—originally called "murderball" due to its aggressive, full-contact nature—was designed to allow quadriplegic athletes with a wide range of functional ability levels to play integral offensive and defensive roles.[3][2][4]
Three years later, the game was first played outside Canada, in the United States.[5] The first international tournament was held in 1982 with teams fromNorth America. By the end of the 1980s, international tournaments included teams from the United Kingdom.[5] It had also reached Australia.[6]
In 1990, wheelchair rugby first appeared at theInternational Stoke Mandeville Games (now theWorld Abilitysport Games) as an exhibition event,[7] and in 1993, the sport was recognized as an official international sport for athletes with a disability.[8] In the same year, the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF) was established as a sports section of ISMWSF to govern the sport.[8] The firstIWRF World Wheelchair Rugby Championships were held inNottwil, Switzerland, in 1995.[9]
Wheelchair rugby appeared as a demonstration sport at the1996 Summer Paralympics inAtlanta, United States. The sport has had full-medal status since the2000 Summer Paralympics inSydney, Australia, and over thirty active countries are now active in international competition, with several others developing the sport.[10]
Wheelchair rugby is played by two teams of players in specially designed wheelchairs. It is a mixed-gender sport and teams include athletes of both sexes. The number of players on each team varies, four against four being the original format.[11] Wheelchair rugby is played indoors on a hardwood court with the same dimensions as a regulation basketball court—28 by 15 meters (91.9 by 49.2 ft). The required court markings are a center line and a circle, and a key area measuring 8 by 1.75 meters (26.2 by 5.7 ft) at each end of the court. No more than three players are allowed in their team's key at any one time while they are defending their goal, and offensive players are not permitted to remain in the opposing team's key for more than eight seconds.[12]
Thegoal line is the section of the end line within the key. Each end of the goal line is marked with a cone-shaped pylon. Players score by carrying the ball across the goal line. For a goal to count, two wheels of the player's wheelchair must cross the line while the player has possession of the ball.[11] Goals are sometimes called "tries" in a manner akin to traditionalrugby.[13] When in possession of the ball, players must bounce or pass it within eight seconds. They must also pass the halfway line within twelve seconds of their team receiving the ball. The team must score within forty seconds of receiving the ball or they will concede possession.[11]
Fouls are penalized by either a thirty-second penalty for defensive fouls andtechnical fouls, or a loss of possession for offensive fouls. In some cases, a penalty goal may be awarded instead of a penalty. While contact between wheelchairs is permitted, there is no contact between players. Common fouls include "spinning" (striking an opponent's wheelchair behind the main axle, causing it to spin horizontally or vertically), "illegal use of hands" or "reaching in" (striking an opponent with the arms or hands), and "holding" (holding or obstructing an opponent by grasping with the hands or arms, or falling onto them).[11]
While different times can be played, games generally consist of four eight-minute quarters. If the ball goes out of play, the time is suspended until it is back in play. If the game is tied at the end of regulation play, three-minute overtime periods are played.[14]
Wheelchair rugby is played in a manual wheelchair, for which the sport's rules include detailed specifications. Players use custom-made sports wheelchairs. Key design features include a front bumper, designed to help strike and hold opposing wheelchairs, and wings that are positioned in front of the main wheels to make the wheelchair more difficult to stop and hold. All wheelchairs must be equipped with spoke protectors to prevent damage to the wheels, and an anti-tip device at the back.[15][16][17] New players and players in developing countries sometimes play in wheelchairs to which temporary bumpers and wings are added to adapt them for wheelchair rugby.[15][18]
Wheelchair rugby uses a regulationvolleyball, typically of a "soft-touch" design, with a slightly textured surface to provide a grip. The balls are normally over-inflated compared to volleyball to make them bouncier. The official ball of the sport is theMolten soft-touch volleyball.[19] Players use other personal equipment, such as gloves and applied adhesives, to assist with ball handling due to their often-impaired gripping ability, and strapping to maintain a good seating position.[20]
To be eligible to play wheelchair rugby, athletes must have some form of disability with a loss of function in both the upper and lower limbs.[21] The majority of wheelchair rugby athletes have spinal-cord injuries at the level of theircervical vertebrae. Other eligible players have disabilities from causes that include multipleamputations,polio, or neurological disorders such ascerebral palsy,muscular dystrophy andGuillain–Barré syndrome.[22][23]
Players are classified according to their functional level and assigned a point value ranging from 0.5—the lowest functional level—to 3.5, the highest. The total classification value of all players of a team on the court at any one time may not exceed eight points.[23][22]
To become classified, players are assessed for their level of disability to determine if they meet the eligibility requirements for wheelchair rugby. These require that an athlete have a neurological disability that involves at least three limbs, or a non-neurological disability that involves all four limbs.[24] The athlete then completes a series of muscle tests to evaluate the strength and range of motion in the upper limbs and trunk. A classification can then be assigned to the athlete. Classification frequently includes subsequent observation of the athlete in competition to confirm that physical function in game situations reflects what was observed during muscle testing.[25][26]
Athletes are permitted to appeal their classification if they feel they have not been properly evaluated. They can be granted a permanent classification if they demonstrate a stable level of function over a series of classification tests. Wheelchair rugby classification is conducted by personnel with medical training, usually physicians, physiotherapists, or occupational therapists. Classifiers must also be trained in muscle testing and in the details of wheelchair-rugby classification.[27]
As of 2026[update], there are thirty-one active countries playing wheelchair rugby and twenty-six more developing national teams, divided into three zones:[10]
The major international wheelchair rugby competitions are the biennial Zone Championships, which are held in odd-numbered years, and the quadrennialWorld Championships, which are held in even-numbered years. Wheelchair rugby is also included in regional events such as theParapan American Games andWorld Games.[28]
Since 2000, wheelchair rugby has been included in theSummer Paralympic Games.[29]
The Paralympic version of wheelchair rugby has been adapted with varied rules and a broader classification system that allows players with more physical functioning to compete.
Team size reduces from 12 in the preliminary rounds to 10 in the semi-finals and final.Classifications are in three categories:
A maximum of 10 points from 4 players can be played on the court at any time.[30]
The 5s version of wheelchair rugby was developed in the UK byGreat Britain Wheelchair Rugby in 2017.[31] The game was officially adopted byWorld Wheelchair Rugby in June 2021.[32] Like the Invictus variation, the 5s game widens eligibility. Team size remains at 12.[33]Classifications in broad groups:
A maximum of 10 points from 5 players can be played on the court at any time.[34]
Wheelchair rugby is featured in theOscar-nominated 2005 documentaryMurderball. It was voted the number-one Top Sports Movie of all time by the movie review websiteRotten Tomatoes.[35] The character Jason Street in the NBC television showFriday Night Lights, having been paralysed in a game of American football in the pilot, tries out for the United States quad rugby team in a later episode.[36]
Yukinobu Ike led the way with 20 tries for Japan
Internationalwheelchair rugby | ||
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| Americas | | |
| Asia-Oceania | ||
| Europe | ||
| Rugby union |
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| Rugby league |
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| Related articles | |||||||||
| Artistic and dance sports | |
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| Ball sports | |
| Martial arts | |
| Precision sports | |
| Strength sports | |
| Trend sports | |
| Past official sports | |
| Invitational sports (never made official) | |
