Activism in disability sports

Published: 2018-12-07 02:41:43
706 words
3 pages
6 min to read
Sewanee University of the South
Type of paper: 

Social missions

Social missions such as activism have been utilized through the expansion of sport and exercise psychology in the modern world. The whole intention of activism is meant to campaign for some form of either social or political change (Houlilan, 2008). In the case of sports for the disabled, activism is seen as a way of fighting for the rights of these people since they are less fortunate in many ways and some of them are also incredibly talented in many respects and for a long time are yet to be recognized anywhere in the world. 

The organization of disability sports has experienced a lot of change over the years; this is evident through its political, public and funding profile. Over time, sporting became one of the best ways of conveying a vital message in across the world and for the disabled people with impairments, there have been drastic and significant developments too. Many nations have also made a step while seeking to encourage reform such as the setting up of sports clubs for the disabled which include clubs for the deaf athletes in existence since 1888; however, their official introduction took off at the end of the Second World War. 

Activism in the sports for the disabled

Due to excessive damages caused during the second world war, most people were affected, this made it easy to put the whole ideology of sports for the disabled into perspective. In the history of the sports for the handicapped, the world had not yet focused much on them for a long time until the war came to a close. At the time, Dr. Ludwig Guttmann initiated the opening of a center which catered for people with spinal injuries in Great Britain (Jarvie, 2012). On the other hand, sports for the disabled focused more on recreational activities as part of a regime that would contribute to the healing process of these victims, but later on, was recognized as a competitive sport. 

During the year 1948 Olympic, history was made in the Paralympic arena; the disabled were given their first opportunity to participate in a universal competition on wheelchairs and thus made it more interesting; in fact, some of the injured men and women had previously served as soldiers during the second world war also participated. The next big event for the disabled was held in Italy in 1960, where 400 athletes representing 23 different countries from across the world participated; since then, sporting activities, as well as competitions for the disabled is now constantly sought after. Such activities also became more significant because they had a relevant connection between the present and the past only implying that the longevity and history of sports were of significance. Facilitators thus ought to improve activism in sports for the disabled through developing policies likely to favor the disabled through ensuring that they can still participate in global sporting competitions. The establishment of the Federation for Disability Sport (EFDS) is also one of the facilitators focusing on improving and creating opportunities for the disabled in the sports arena. 

Barriers limiting activism in sports for the disabled

Barriers to restrain support for the disabled sport would be such as lack of emotional, physical and any other forms of support that would boost the morale of the disabled athletes (Tomlinson, 2007). On the other hand, insufficient or lack of funds to support these sporting activities, negative perception towards the disabled among other factors are prone to affect activism in this respect. 

In conclusion, recreations during sporting activities, encourage the development and growth which bring about many benefits in the society. It entails things like; freedom, adventure, friendships not forgetting to mention the emergence of new and better opportunities across the society just to name a few. It is thus important for all to encourage such developments while seeking to rehabilitate the handicapped so as to improve their psychological and physical support because it's likely to assist while going about this initiative.   



Houlihan, B. (2008). Sport and Society: A Student Introduction. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications.  

Jarvie, G. (2012). Sport, Culture and Society: An Introduction, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon: Taylor & Francis.    

Tomlinson, A.T. (2007). The Sports Studies Reader, Taylor & Francis, Inc.




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