Social wheelchair basketball programme at Massey's recreation centre.
The Manawatū campus Recreation Centre has joined forces with ParaFed Manawatū and a former student to support young people with disabilities to participate in sport and recreation.
As part of the initiative, the Recreation Centre is hosting Manawatū’s first ever social wheelchair basketball programme. Massey alumnus and New Zealand wheelchair basketballer Luke McDowall is running the sessions with the assistance of ParaFed’s sport development advisor and elite para-triathlete Shaz Dagg.
The programme is open to anyone with a physical disability to come and join the fun. The sessions are attended by local school children and their parents.
Recreation Centre operations manager Ron Werner says: “It is great to be able to help ParaFed support young people with disabilities participate in sport and seeing the kids active in the sessions is brilliant.
“We’ve already seen a couple of Massey students join in the sessions which shows the power of sport in bringing communities together.”
ParaFed Manawatū supports physically disabled people from Manawatū to participate and compete in sport and recreation. Ms Dagg says: “The laughter and the smiles sum it up beautifully.”