In the games first years there were few rules so body contact and falling out of chairs was common place, hence the original name for wheelchair Rugby, Murderball. As Murderball evolved, new rules regarding body contact and standardised timing vastly changed the game and increased its appeal. The sport got its first real break when a team from Winnipeg, Canada, organised an exhibition match at the University of Minnesota’s regional track meet. The sport proved popular and Canada held its first national championships later that year.
As its popularity grew, so did its international appeal and it was eventually introduced into the United States by the University Lecturer, Brad Mikkelsen, in 1981. It was now that the game would take on its modern form as Brad Mikkelsen, with the help of University of North Dakota’s Disabled Student Services, reformed many of the games rules and also changed its name from Murderball to Quad Rugby. Brad Mikkelsen also set up the first official Quad Rugby team called the Dakota Wallbangers.
The first official Quad Rugby match in America was held during the 1982 National Wheelchair Games at the Southwest State University. The match was between Brad Mikkelsen’s Dakota Wallbangers and a team from Minnesota. Again the match only served to further increase Quad Rugby’s appeal and that same year the University of North Dakota held the first international tournament, with teams coming from all over the world to compete.
In 1988, the United States Quad Rugby Association (USQRA) was formed and tasked with regulating and promoting the sport on both a national and international level. The USQRA, with help from Wheelchair Sports USA (WS/USA), enjoyed a good deal of success promoting the sport which by this time was becoming fully global.
The sport got its first taste of the Paralympics in Atlanta 1996, where it was used as a demonstration event. The game proved so well-liked that in Sydney 2000, it became a full medal sport. A further four years later at Athens the sports Paralympics profile increased further when a total of 24 matches were played over a period of six days at the Helliniko Indoor Arena, each day drawing large numbers of spectators.
Wheelchair Rugby is now believed to be one of the fastest growing wheelchair sports in the world, with World Championships held every four years by the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF). There are now over twenty international teams worldwide from as far away as Australia and, on top of this, many countries also have a whole host of club and regional teams. America alone has over forty five Quad Rugby Clubs with many in development. This is a further sign of just how much the sport has progressed since its invention in the mid 1970’s.
Athletes may have various disabilities which prohibit their participation in able-bodied sports. To become eligible to play Quad Rugby players must have a combination of upper and lower extremity impairment , most of the Quad Rugby players have sustained cervical level spinal injuries and have thus some type of quadriplegia as a result. However, Quad Rugby players could include those whose disability is the result of Polio, Cerebral Palsy or even progressive diseases like Multiple Sclerosis or Muscular Dystrophy.
Competitors in Quad Rugby are given a classification grade from one of seven classifications ranging from 0.5 – 3.5. Players graded 0.5 are the competitors with the greatest impairment and are comparable to a C5 quadriplegic. Those with higher grades around the 3.5 mark have the least impairment and are similar to C7-8 incomplete quadriplegic. A player gains a classification grade based on their ability to perform certain tasks, set by the IWRF, associated with different skills in the game. A team of four can have no more than 8 classification points on the court at any one time. This ensures everyone has a vital role to play during the game and also eliminates gender advantages, thus the game is open to both males and females.
Wheelchair Rugby is a four a side game played on a Basketball court using a standard Volleyball. At each end of the court there is a goal measuring 8 meters in width. To score a player must simply cross the goal line ensuring that the ball is under control and that both wheels of their chair are over the line. Figure 1, shows a standard Quad Rugby Pitch.
Fig. 1, Quad Rugby pitch
The opposition’s task is to simply intercept the ball or force a mistake, however this must be done without person to person contact, chair to chair is allowed though. Once the ball has entered the oppositions half it is not permitted to be passed back into the attackers half, also players must pass the ball every 10 seconds by bouncing or simply throwing it to a team mate.
A game of Quad Rugby lasts thirty two minutes in total but is split up into four periods of eight minutes. An average team will consist of twelve players, both male and female, with four on the court at any one time. The reason for the large number of substitutes is that during the game the wheelchairs require constant maintenance due to the number of hard collisions they sustain.
There are a number of recommended pre sport exercises for Quad Rugby players and/or training exercises designed to enhance performance. These prepare players for optimum performance and reduce the risk of injury during the game.
Exercise programmes for people with spinal cord injury’s who use wheelchairs usually follow the four basic components of fitness. These are muscular strength and endurance, cardio-respiratory endurance and body composition and flexibility. However, before exercise programmes are set an individual assessment should be made with each athlete.
Depending on the classification of the individual, whether they are a quadriplegic or high level paraplegic, their conditioning programs will be different although based along the same guide lines. Therefore training programmes for paraplegics should be the same or similar to those developed for their able-bodied peers.
General fitness requirements for Quad Rugby are therefore similar to those needed by able-bodied Rugby players. Strength, muscular endurance and general cardio-respiratory endurance are all important factors needed during an average game. Strength would be needed when making passes or for making block tackles, muscular endurance would be important in maintaining a high level of strength throughout the game, and cardio-respiratory endurance would ensure a player can compete at high levels for longer.
Other key fitness requirements are flexibility and balance which are important for collecting awkward passes and keeping the ball under control. The training of wheelchair athletes is thus in keeping with that undertaken by able-bodied players.
Anaerobic and aerobic training of quadriplegics and high level paraplegics can lead to an increase in performance, however, due to decreased amounts of muscle mass these athletes tire more quickly than lower level paraplegics or able-bodied athletes. Consequently, when training with paraplegics anaerobic training should be used.
On the whole training for Quad Rugby player’s shadows that used by their able-bodied peers and is designed to work on the fitness requirements needed for the sport. All forms of training help psychologically and thus improvements in performance inevitably go up. From the increase in performance level players will gain increased confidence, self efficacy and motivation, just like their able-bodied counterparts.
Overall the development of Quad Rugby (Wheelchair Rugby) has been extremely quick since its invention in the mid 1970’s. It has become very popular in modern times and is generally considered the fastest growing sport for wheelchair users. It is predicted that its popularity will continue to grow due to the success of able-bodied Rugby. This view is held by Pawel Zbieranowski, President of the IWRF, “There is no doubt that Wheelchair Rugby is enjoying a spin-off of interest based on the able-bodied sport of Rugby”.
In terms of fitness requirements for Quad Rugby, they are similar to those needed for able-bodied Rugby and training for the sport reflects that.
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References
Australian Sports Commission (1996) (Coaching Wheelchair Athletes)
Wesson, K. (2000) (Sport and PE second edition)
Winnick, J. (2000) (Adapted Physical Education and Sport)
Winnick, J. (1990) (Adapted Physical Education and Sport)
Web Sites
http://www.paralympics.com