The city of Paris has set up workshops on the forecourt of the Hôtel de Ville to introduce disabled sports, which will be represented at the Paralympic Games. An initiative that appeals to young and old alike.
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The Paralympic Games start on August 28, but it is already possible to try some disciplines. On the forecourt of Paris City Hall, several of them are offered: sitting volleyball, boccia, badminton and wheelchair basketball. And during this school holiday period, they particularly attract children.
That afternoon, six children discovered wheelchair basketball, thanks to the valuable advice of Léo Bony Joseph, member of the Île-de-France committee of the French Handisport Federation. A 3-on-3 match lasting 10 minutes. And as soon as he sat down, Arthur, 6, had already mastered the movement perfectly. But scoring is more complicated, admits Emma, 7. “You’re smaller, so it’s harder to shoot baskets. You have to stay seated and not stand up.”
Sébastien Sanchez is a group leader at the leisure centre. This outing should provide a very specific lesson for the children: their “to make people understand that you can do sport even when you have physical problems. And that we adapt the equipment so that disabled people can still do sport.”
On the sidelines, Aurélie watches her five-year-old son try to score his first basket. This 37-year-old mother is also learning the discipline. “Children and adults discover all kinds of sports at the Paralympic Games.”
And when Léo Bony Joseph explains the rules to her, she is very surprised to learn that the baskets are placed 3.05 meters from the ground. “The difficulty is the height, because the basket is at the same height as for players without wheelchairs. You have to have big muscles to send the ball high enough. It must be hard to move very quickly. It must be impressive.”
She will be able to see it with her own eyes, as she and her son have tickets to the wheelchair basketball events at the Paralympic Games in early September.