The YMCA International House which is located in Mumbai Central held an amazing event on Sunday. Well, in early March the events are the basketball players deftly maneuvering their wheelchairs. Instead of running across the field they were trying to put the ball into the opponent’s basket on a wheelchair. One of the most famous playback singers of the Bollywood industry, Shaan was present in the event. Well, with his songs, the audience and the players were enjoying the entire day. The event was the Wheelchair Basketball Premier League (WBPL).
The basketball event:
As per the reports it was conducted for the very first time in Mumbai and was organized by a non profit organization named Project Mumbai. According to the sources 20 players had been participating and all were in wheelchairs. They were divided into fight scenes as a competition for the winning title. Along with the players who are affected by polio they were also other players with different disabilities. The WBPL also included a team of the Pune-based Armed Forces Paraplegic Rehabilitation Center. Well, they were people who got injured in war or other situations.
“This is the first such tournament in the history of wheelchair basketball. Besides training them in the game, the agenda is also to promote inclusiveness and get the physically facing challenges to participate in such sports,” said Suvarna Limaye. He is a former national-level basketball player and coach of the Pune basketball team. The event was aiming to promote the players with disabilities for inclusiveness. People with disabilities, Limaye says, have resilience, patience and mental strength.
Details about the players:
“They transfer such qualities to able-bodied players,” she added. however to get the players with disabilities on a ground is something that is not an easy task. As per her when you are facing financial issues since they will not have a well paying job. Also the traveling accessibility and safety or some other challenges they will have to face. Many of the families did not allow them to go for the training sessions as well. however they are comparative food in behavior as well as the entire theme of was something that brought them together. And a solid this may make the entire event a very successful one.
“While they are mentally strong, they are not athletes; so bringing them to a certain fitness level is a big task. Only once they achieve that can we teach them the sport and the skills,” she adds. “Our effort is to see social transformation. So, not only do we want to create sporting opportunities for every person with disability by making the sport of their choice available but also change citizens’ mindsets towards accessibility. And with this, make our urban spaces more inclusive,” said Shishir Joshi, the founder and chief executive of the NGO, Project Mumbai.
As per the reports, this NGO has been working for a long time for these prayers to find sponsorship. Also they have a provider of training and coaching opportunities for them. Well, there are only a few basketball courts in India that are very much suitable for the players who can play there. Also they do not have washrooms that are large enough to accommodate wheelchairs. Project Mumbai’s aims to make more venues for them.
