From the mountains to The Strand: Mammoth offers model for South Bay para athletes
A skiing, biking and paddling program for people with disabilities in snowy Mammoth Lakes is a model for for the sunny South Bay by Marisa Gierlich The concept of “adaptive recreation” dates back to the 1924 Paris Silent Games (Deaflympics). The games were the first international competition for athletes with disabilities. During the World War II years, the National Wheelchair Athletic Association helped wounded veterans rehabilitate playing wheelchair basketball. Neurologist Sir Ludwig Guddmann, who escaped to England from Nazi Germany, set the foundation for the Paralympic Games by organizing a 16-game competition for veterans in wheelchairs. The first National Wheelchair Games were held in the US in the 1950s. The Paris 2024 Olympics, from August 28 to September 8, will feature nearly 2,000 athletes from over 80 counties, competing in 22 sports, among them the blind soccer, seated volleyball, cycling, rowing, and track and field events. Staff instructor Mary Toomey and an upright outrigger student. Photo by Jacob Myhre/DSES The South Bay has several programs for people with disabilities. The most notable is the Friendship Foundation, which matches disabled with non-disabled…
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