Wheelchair Sport
Any sport played from a sports wheelchair, such as wheelchair basketball, rugby, or tennis.
Definition
Wheelchair sport covers the many disciplines contested by athletes seated in a purpose-built sports wheelchair, including wheelchair basketball, rugby, tennis, and racing. These chairs are engineered for the sport rather than daily use, with cambered wheels for stability and quick turns, and often anti-tip or bumper features tailored to contact games.
The playing rules are usually adapted from the running game with sport-specific additions, for example the way pushing and dribbling combine in wheelchair basketball or the two-bounce rule in wheelchair tennis. Many wheelchair sports welcome a range of participants, and some are played by disabled and non-disabled athletes together, making them a common entry point into inclusive competition.
Where you’ll hear “wheelchair sport”
Sports that use this term:
Basketball
A fast, dynamic team sport of running, jumping and quick decisions on court.
Tennis
A singles or doubles racquet sport that blends agility, strategy and stamina on court.
Rugby
A physical team sport of carrying, passing and kicking an oval ball toward the opposing line.
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Adaptive sports
- Wheelchair SportsSports played from a wheelchair — often a specialised sports chair — so that wheelchair users can take part, train and compete.
- Adaptive equipmentPurpose-built or adjusted gear — from sport wheelchairs to sound-adapted balls — that helps make a sport accessible to play.
- Adaptive rulesAdjustments to a sport's rules — such as how a ball may bounce or how play is signalled — that keep the game fair and playable for everyone.
- Ambulant Para SportsPara sports for athletes who compete standing or on foot — walking or running — rather than from a wheelchair or seated position.
Decision making
- Positioning choicesDeciding where to place yourself — often before the ball arrives — to cover space, stay ready to act and shape what an opponent can do.
- AnticipationForming an expectation of what is likely to happen next, and starting to prepare for it before it does.
- Transition decisionsThe choices made at the moment a situation flips — winning or losing the ball, and switching between attack and defence.
- Shot selectionChoosing which shot to play from the options available — weighing the situation, the risk and what you are trying to achieve.
- Adapting to conditionsAdjusting your decisions as the conditions around you change — weather, surface, equipment, fatigue or an opponent's style.
Equipment
- Padel racketA solid, stringless perforated racket used to play padel.
- BasketballA large, inflated ball with a dimpled surface used to play basketball.
- Tennis racquetA strung frame with a handle used to hit the ball in tennis.
- Tennis ballA hollow rubber ball covered in felt used in tennis and related racquet sports.
- Table tennis batA small wooden blade covered with rubber used to hit the ball in table tennis.
Skills
- Net playThe skill of controlling points close to the net with volleys and touch shots.
- ServingThe skill of putting the ball or shuttle into play to start a point or rally.
- ReboundingThe basketball skill of gaining the ball after a missed shot.
- RallyingThe skill of exchanging shots back and forth to build and win a point.
- ShootingThe skill of striking or releasing the ball toward the goal or basket to score.
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- Content type
- Term
- Provenance
- Tier A — evergreen educational
- Verified external sources
- 0
- Content updated
- 2026-08-04
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