Each year more than 500 novice and experienced veteran athletes with disabilities meet for a week of friendly, spirited competition and fellowship. This year’s games "Quest for the Best," being held in Omaha, Nebraska, on July 25-29, 2008, will include 9-Ball, Air Guns, Archery, Basketball, Bowling, Handcycling, Motorized Wheelchair Rally, Power Soccer, Quad Rugby, Softball, Swimming, Table Tennis, Track and Field, Trapshooting, Weightlifting, and Wheelchair Slalom.
There will also be a Sled Hockey exhibition and clinics in: Standing Archery, Field Sports, Table Tennis, and Track for amputees using prostheses.
Paralyzed Veterans of America and the Department of Veterans Affairs have co-presented the Games since 1985. The Games are open to U.S. military service veterans who use wheelchairs for sports competition due to spinal cord injuries, certain neurological conditions, amputations, or other mobility impairments.
What the Games Can Do for YouHolly Koester, sports director of the Buckeye (Ohio) Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America, credits the 1991 Summer Wheelchair Games for saving her life. A former company commander in the 101st Airborne of the U.S. Army, Holly was paralyzed at T-7 in a motor vehicle accident driving on the post. Holly said, “I felt like I couldn’t do anything because of my disability. A whole new world opened up to me when I went to my first Summer Games. I saw people who were in great shape despite their disabilities. They were all having fun and enjoying life. It changed my whole outlook.”
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