Athletes with Disabilities: Breaking Through Barriers
By Joshua West

There is athletic potential inside every human body, regardless of its shape or size. An athlete is defined as someone with the ability to participate in physical exercise, especially in competitive games and races (Corbin, Lindsey, Welk, and Corbin; pg 37, 2002). Contrary to popular belief, nowhere in this widely accepted definition does it state that in order to be considered an athlete that one must have the full functional abilities of all four limbs. Yet quite often athletes with disabilities, such as amputations, face unnecessary barriers in pursuit of their athletic endeavors. These barriers come in the form of inconsistent beliefs about persons with disabilities, athletic equipment that is not suited to meet each athlete's needs, or an unwillingness by others to modify a sport or game to allow for inclusion. The author of this article intends to explore the world of athletes with limb deficiencies that have resulted in amputation; and how they pursue sports for recreation and competition.

DEFINING DISABILITY

Impairment is defined as any loss or abnormality of psychological, physical, or anatomical structure or function (Patel and Roth, 2004). Disability occurs as a direct result of impairment. Disability is defined as any restriction or lack of an ability to perform an activity in the manner, or within the range of motion, normal for a human being (Patel and Roth, 2004). Amputations are classified as either congenital or acquired. Congenital amputations are present at birth and are usually the result of a failure of formation of developing limbs in the very early stages of pregnancy (Boyajian-O'neil, 2004). Acquired amputations can be the result of an acute trauma or disease (Beaverton, 2005).

It is an all too common misconception of society that those living with amputations are weak, frail, or otherwise ill. Contrary to this faulty logic, the vast majority of persons living with amputations are entirely healthy, they just lack one or more extremity or appendage, and more often than not those persons possess above average strength in their healthy extremities.

ATHLETES CURRENTLY BREAKING BOUNDARIES

The concept of disability can sometimes be a subjective issue. A person can objectively state that they have a congenital amputation, which does not afford them the use of a foot or a hand, but how much the impairment disables this person is largely up to the individual's mindset. Admittedly, having a congenital or acquired amputation is a disability, but it does not have to close doors to participation in athletics for recreational enjoyment, or on a more competitive level. More than 1 million athletes with disabilities participated in some form of organized athletics in 2004, and this number continues to grow (Patel and Roth, 2004).

Those dealing with an amputation do not need to look too far for inspiration. Athletes with amputations are proving every day that their impairments cannot suppress a will to succeed by competing in the highest levels of athletic competition. American sprinter Marlon Shirley is one of these athlete breaking barriers on a daily basis. Shirley is the fastest below-the-knee amputee on the planet. He holds the Paralympic world record for the 100-meter run, with a time of 10.97 seconds (Runners World, 2005). The official world record for 100 meters is currently 9.77 seconds, meaning that Marlon Shirley- who competes with a prosthetic right leg, is just more than one second slower than the world's fastest human over 100 meters. Perhaps more impressive is above-the-knee amputee and Challenged Athletes advocate Sarah Reinertson. Reinertson owns the female Paralympic world records for the 100, 200, and 400-meter runs. In November of 2005, Sarah became the first female amputee ever to complete the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon. Reinertson swam 2.4 miles, cycled 112 miles, and ran 26.2 miles nonstop in what is widely considered to be the World's most grueling single day athletic event. Competitors like Marlon and Sarah serve as inspiration to all Americans, and athletes just like these are all around us, changing the world's perception about athletes with disabilities.

PROSTHETIC ADAPTIONS

As manufacturing technology surges forward and the engineering of materials advance at lightning fast speeds, so does the field of prosthetics development. Today, athletes with amputations have many viable options to choose from when selecting a prosthetic to fit the needs of their sport. Examples of prostheses and adapted equipment that feature performance enhancing sports specific design include:

• The Freestyle Terminal Swimming Device from Therapeutic Recreation Systems, Inc. This is a technical swimming paddle with a folding wing design for use by a person with a prosthetic arm while swimming (AbleData, 2005).
• The Cheetah Flex-Sprint III is a below-the-knee foot prosthesis made of lightweight carbon fiber made by Ossur. This high-tech prosthesis is used by runners and sprinters (Ossur, 2005).
• Aerodynamic, lightweight wheelchairs designed for road racing are continuing to help athletes who are chair-bound set new records for all distances.
• The Sit-Ski from Kierstead Water Skis allows individuals to water ski in a seated position while being held securely in place by a custom-fitted cage (AbleData, 2005).

SPORTS AS THEREPY

Sports participation for athletes with special needs provides the same benefits for athletes without special needs: increased exercise endurance, muscular strength, flexibility, and improved cardiovascular function, balance, motor skills (Todorovich and Stopka, 2005). The psychological benefits can include increased self-esteem, reduced anxiety and depression, and the satisfaction derived from participation and competition (Boyajian-O’neil, 2004). Benefits of sports and athletics specific to athletes with amputations are improved proprioreception, and increased proficiency using prosthetic devices. Young athletes should be encouraged to experiment with as many different sports as possible. It is important that it is demonstrated to these kids at a young age that their participation in athletics is limited only by their level of interest. Most traditional sports need little or no modification of the rules to level the playing field for participants with amputations.

A person's outward physical appearance is not always a good indicator of athletic prowess, as willpower and determination can more than compensate for what some might view as physical shortcomings. Athletes with disabilities must overcome many physical obstacles to obtain equal footing in the world of sports, so fighting stereotypes created by an uninformed segment of the population should not have to be one of them. While a person's physical exterior may not entirely fit certain social norms, it does not mean that they should not be given all possible affordances to compete as an equal. There is much support available to athletes with disabilities, in the form of other athletes with disabilities who serve as role models and advocates for inclusion in the mainstream sports world. Adapted equipment and prosthetics are constantly being improved to enhance performance, and further level the playing field between athletes with disabilities and those without. Athletes come in all shapes and sizes; so when given the opportunity to help an athlete with a disability, one should strive to be a bridge to athletic participation, not a barrier.

REFERENCES

• AbleData Fact sheet on Aquatic Sports and Recreation Equipment. July, 2005
  http://www.abledata.com/abledata_docs/Aquatic_Sports.htm, Site accessed; November 7, 2005
• Beaverton School District Motor Development Team, Disability Resource Guide for Physical Education Teachers. http://www.beaverton.k12.or.us/parent/sped/DisabilityPEteachers.pdf, Site accessed; November 7, 2005
• Boyajian-O’neill, L., (2004). The Pre-participation Examination for the Athlete with Special Needs. The Physician and SportsMedicine. (Volume 32, Num 9, September 2004) McGraw-Hill.
• Corbin, C., Lindsey, R., Welk, G., and Corbin, W. (2002) Concepts of Fitness and Wellness (Forth Edition pgs 37-38) McGraw-Hill publishing.
• Patel, Dilip R., and Roth, Aimee R. (2004). Pediatric Athletes with Physical Disabilities. Athletic Therapy Today (Volume 9, Issue 2, pgs 11-15) Illinois: Human Kinetics Publisher, Inc.
• Runners World, Volume 40, Issue 39. pg 72
• Stopka, C., and Todorovich, J. (2005) Applied Special Physical Education and
  Exercise Therapy. (Fourth Edition, pgs 48-49) Pearson Custom Publishing
  

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