HISTORY OF WHEELCHAIR ATHLETICS
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has been a leader in wheelchair sports programming for more than 70 years. This tradition encompasses all campus activities related to being a student-athlete. It also serves to motivate and set a standard of expectation that makes Illinois the premier school for individuals interested in exploring their academic and athletic potential. The most valuable resource of the Illinois Wheelchair Athletics program is unquestionably its intelligent, highly motivated, and very capable population of student-athletes.
In terms of resources, Illinois has the most experienced cadre of coaches, administrators, and ancillary support personnel in wheelchair athletics with over 60 years of combined experience at the national and international levels. In terms of performance, Illinois athletes continue to serve as a benchmark of athletic excellence for the world. Illinois student-athletes have participated in every Paralympic Games since the inaugural event held in Rome in 1960.
Did you know?
In 1980 Sharon Hedrick was the first woman with a visible disability to be named Female Athlete of the Year at the University of Illinois.
PARALYMPIC GAMES FINAL STANDINGS
148 Illinois athletes
have competed in the Paralympic Games from 1960-2022.
Jack Whitman
First gold medal ever awarded in the 1960 Paralympic Games.
In the past five Paralympic Games, had the Illinois contingent of current students and alumni been treated as a nation, the University would have finished in the medal standings:
- 16th, 2004, Athens; tied with Mexico and Brazil
- 13th, 2008, Beijing
- 18th, 2012, London; 10th overall in gold medal standings
- 16th, 2016, Rio; 9th overall in gold medal standings
- 21st, 2020, Tokyo
MEN’S WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL
Did you know?
The Illinois wheelchair basketball teams were named the “Gizz Kids” and the “Ms Kids” after the Illinois Whiz Kids until 1986 when they became the “Fighting Illini”.
- 1948: The University of Illinois was the first college in the United States to establish a collegiate wheelchair basketball team, the University of Illinois Gizz Kids.
- 1949: Coached by Tim Nugent, the Illinois Wheelchair Basketball team competed in the first National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament which lead to the founding of the National Wheelchair Basketball Association.
- 1953: Illini Gizz Kids won their first National Wheelchair Basketball Championship.
- 1978: The Central Intercollegiate Conference was formed to address the unique needs, interests, and abilities of the student-athlete while maintaining active membership in the NWBA.
WOMEN’S WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL
- 1970: The first women’s collegiate team was formed at the University of Illinois.
- 1974: The first women’s wheelchair basketball game played between two college teams, the University of Illinois Ms. Kids and the Southern Illinois University Squidettes was held at Kenney Gym on the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus.
- 1978: Susan Hagel and Sharon Hedrick helped lead the Illinois women to their first national championship.
- ‘80s-‘90s: The 1980s and ‘90s proved to be a time of unmatched competitive excellence for the Illini, winning seven national championships as the only collegiate team competing against women’s club division teams.
- ‘00s-‘10s: As the only women’s collegiate team, the Illini began competing in the men’s collegiate division, which led to winning six national women’s division championships in the 2000s. The 2010-11 season marked the inaugural season for women’s collegiate competition. Jennifer Ruddell, Christina Schwab, and Helen Freeman were integral parts of the changing landscape of the sport.
Did you know?
Since the 1976, 38 Illini women have represented their countries at Paralympic Games bringing home 17 national team medals.
TRACK HISTORY
Wheelchair track first appeared as a sanctioned event in the United States in 1956. During the first decades of the sport, Illinois athletes such as Ron Stein enjoyed notable success. His gold-medal performances in both the 1960 Paralympics and the 1964 Paralympics — eight gold medals in total — were the most golds won by an Illinois wheelchair track athlete until Tatyana McFadden matched him with her 8th gold at the 2020 Paralympics. From Ron Stein to Tatyana McFadden, Illinois wheelchair track athletes have consistently proven themselves the world’s best, winning nearly 150 medals in Paralympic competition and winning every prestigious road race in the world including the Boston, London, Chicago, New York City, and Paris Marathons.
Medals Won in the Past Four Paralympic Games:
- 20 Gold Medals
- 16 Silver Medals
- 18 Bronze Medals
‘80s-‘90s
The Illinois wheelchair track program achieved transformative growth and success. Sharon Rahn Hedrick won gold medals in both the 1984 and 1988 Olympic 800-meter event; Scot Hollonbeck began a streak of track dominance in the 1992 Games that stretched into the early 2000s; Jean Driscoll won her first Boston Marathon in 1990, the first of her record-setting eight victories on that course.
‘00s-‘10s
Success continued with a new generation of athletes such as Amanda McGrory, Jessica Galli, Joshua George, and Raymond Martin winning dozens of Paralympic medals and world titles. Tatyana McFadden dominated the women’s division on both the track and the road, stretching from the 100 meters to the marathon, establishing herself as one of the greatest wheelchair racers of all time.
USOPC National Training Site for Wheelchair Track
The University of Illinois was named the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic (USOPC) National Training Site for Wheelchair Track in 2014. It serves as one of just nine training sites across the country and is the sole training site that develops and supports wheelchair track athletes for Team USA.
Within its 2,000 square feet of dedicated space, research, and innovation intersect to provide athletes with access to cutting-edge equipment, analysis, and training. The USOPC National Training Site houses 10 variable resistance indoor rollers that enable athletes to more effectively prepare for outdoor conditions while training indoors, mimicking uphill and headwind conditions. Data is collected during each practice and displayed via iPads, providing athletes with ongoing performance feedback and allowing for post-workout analysis by the coaching staff. To better access improvements made by athletes, inertial measurement units are attached to their limbs that measure velocity of movement and effectiveness of technique.
Adjacent to the USOPC National Training Site, the Human Performance and Mobility Maker Lab (HPML) features 3D-scanning and printing technology. In the HPML, students and staff have developed innovative 3D printed racing wheelchair gloves, including the first dual-density glove, which blends firm and flexible plastic in a single glove to provide optimal performance.
PERFORMANCE AND WELLNESS TEAM
The Performance and Wellness Team — made up of athletic trainers, physical therapists, occupational therapists, strength and conditioning experts, and undergraduate and graduate interns — provides holistic care for students and student-athletes during their time at Illinois. Based in the Wellness Gym and Treatment Area, the team works side by side with the student-athletes on a daily basis, providing sports medicine services, rehabilitation from injury to return to sport, and creation of personal exercise programs. The Team also provides first aid, mental health referrals, nutritional counseling and consults on assistive device needs. Ensuring the long-term health and wellness for student-athletes is at the core of all activities in the Wellness Gym, equipping them with the practical knowledge and hands-on experience of how to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle once their competitive athletic career is over.
CENTER FOR MOVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
The Center for Movement and Performance (CMP) will be a state-of-the-art indoor multi-use space, home to the University of Illinois Wheelchair Athletics program. Research, innovation, and athletic pursuit will merge to push human performance into the next frontier.
The CMP will provide athletes and coaches world-class practice and competition facilities, ideal for hosting national and international competition. Faculty and students will intersect in an interdisciplinary space fostering creativity, teaching, and learning.
OUTREACH
The Holiday Party for Children with a disability began in 1972 and continues with over 150 kids and their families attending each year.
The University of Illinois Summer Wheelchair Sports Camp started in 1987 and has developed into the Illini Wheelchair Basketball and Wheelchair Track Camps and Coaching Clinics. These programs bring in over 100+ athletes and coaches from around the world each summer.
The teams participate in team building activities to build skills that extend beyond the field of play. Our student-athletes engage in activities such as cook-offs, camping, ropes courses, firefighter training, ramp building, and other service activities.
From the very beginning, the Illinois Wheelchair Athletics program has emphasized the potential and aptitude of someone with a disability. The program regularly engages in educational outreach, fundraising, and hosting community demonstration events.
WHY ILLINOIS
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is one of the original 37 public land-grant institutions created after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Morrill Act in 1862.
The university is in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana (total population 207,000) in east-central Illinois, situated about 140 miles south of Chicago, 125 miles west of Indianapolis, and 180 miles northeast of St. Louis.
- 15 Colleges and Instructional Units
- One of the largest public university libraries in the world
- 100% of all classrooms have wireless access
- Rated as one of the most “disability friendly” U.S. campuses
The university was the first to provide students with disabilities access to all university services, curricula, and facilities; developed the first architectural accessibility standards; designed & instituted a wheelchair accessible bus system; and the first to offer comprehensive wheelchair sports programming.
- We developed the first transitional living program for students with physical disabilities needing personal assistant support services.
- 52,000+ students from 50 states and 100 countries
- 38,000+ applications received each year
- 5000+ courses offered
- 150+ programs of study
- 13,700+ faculty and staff
- 24 undergraduate campus residence halls
- 15 private certified housing units
- 1000+ registered student organizations, coalitions, honorary societies, and club sport teams
- 8 cultural centers
- 470,000+ living alumni of the University of Illinois, one of the largest US alumni organizations
DRES
Disability Resources and Educational Services (DRES) plays a vital role in ensuring that all students with disabilities are afforded an equal opportunity to participate in, contribute to, and benefit from the programs, services, and activities of the university. DRES strives to accomplish this mission through the identification and enactment of reasonable modifications to institutional policies and procedures, the provision of effective auxiliary aids and services, the establishment of innovative educational services, and the pursuit of interdisciplinary disability research both within the college of Applied Health Sciences and with other world-class campus partners including the Grainger College of Engineering and Carle Illinois College of Medicine. DRES has been associated with many formative and ground-breaking innovations over the years, including the development of the first architectural accessibility standards and the first collegiate adapted sports and recreation program. While DRES is known for serving students with physical disabilities, over 74% of students registered have nonvisible disabilities. The 12 departments at DRES are supported by 46 staff members who help students accommodate all of these needs.
DRES serves over 3,500 students, with the number of students increasing each year. Services available to all students registered with DRES:
- Academic, housing and campus accommodations
- Executive skills/academic coaching
- Individual and group therapy
- Captioning, text conversion
- Testing Accommodations
- Accessible transportation
- Career Services
- ASL interpreters/CART
College of Applied Health Sciences
The College of Applied Health Sciences (AHS) can trace its roots back to 1895, when the University of Illinois established the Department of Physical Training for Men and the Department of Physical Training for Women. AHS Mission: We promote culturally relevant individual and community health and well-being across the lifespan, facilitate optimal living with disability, and foster the development of livable communities in a diverse society through learning, discovery, and engagement.
- 1948: Rehabilitation-Education Services established.
- 1962: Joined College of Applied Life Studies.
- 1994: Rehabilitation academic program moved to Department of Community Health.
- 2004: The Division of Rehabilitation Education Services is renamed the Division of Disability Resources and Educational Services.
HOW TO CONTRIBUTE
Since 1948, donors have helped provide critical support to students with visible and nonvisible disabilities at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign through the programs and services at DRES. Donor funds are used to support various needs that include:
- Full tuition and housing scholarships for student-athletes
- Equipment, supplies, and travel expenses for the athletics program
- Center for Movement and Performance
- Endowed Head Coaching Positions
- Academic graduate hourly pay and stipends to provide academic coaching and assessment and mental health services for student-athletes
- Career events and career support services
- Holiday Party for children with a disability
To provide a gift in support of the Varsity Wheelchair Athletics program, please make your check payable to the University of Illinois Foundation. In the memo line, please write Fund #11330442. This is the fund number for the program. The mailing address is University of Illinois Foundation, 1305 W. Green St., Urbana, IL 61801-2962. If you prefer to give online, please follow the link below and list Fund 11330442 in the box for “Other.”